Death Waits For No Hero
by tyger666
Summary: ON HIATUS! Harry wakes up after being dead for two weeks. He isn't alive, but he isn't dead, and he has no idea what happened to him. Slash! HPDM. Also contains self injury, swearing, and some just plain disturbing stuff.
1. What the Hell?

_A/N: Okay, I have no idea what came over me with this one. Please, be kind._

**Chapter 1: What the hell?**

I never planned to kill myself. It just happened. I was staring at the grounds from the astronomy tower, and the next thing I knew I was headed toward the ground. I don't know what made me do it. I guess I just wondered what it would be like to die. It had always been one of life's greatest mysteries to me. But my death is not important. What is important is the fact that I woke up two weeks later, after they had already buried me.

From what I understand, they tried to give me a small funeral, with only a few people there, but the news of my death had already spread to the papers, and the ministry insisted on having a ridiculously large service, which about two thirds of the wizarding world attended. I was buried at Hogwarts, near the forest, where they had built a small marble tomb. It was an extremely uncomfortable situation to wake up in. It was cramped, and reeked of decay, though I suppose some of that might have been me. After all, two weeks _is_ a rather long time to be dead. Needless to say, I was rather confused.

I slowly made my way to the small door at the front of the tomb. They had sealed it shut after placing me inside, so it was a bitch to get open. when I finally did, the light nearly blinded me. I blinked for a good ten minutes before I was able to make sense of anything I was seeing. I tried to take a deep breath, but instead I began to cough, expelling a great deal of dust from my lungs. I vaguely noted that I had not been breathing since I first woke. There was nobody around, so I had a moment to think before doing anything. Before I could decide anything, however, I was interrupted by, of all people, Severus Snape. He was walking toward the forest, and did not notice me at first. When he did see me, he thought I was a student at first.

"What are you doing out of class?" Noticing the Gryffindor robes I was buried in, he sneered. "Fifty points from Gryffindor, and detention with me tonight at seven."

I am still not sure how he managed to mistake me for a student as opposed to a two week old corpse.

"I don't think you can take points from a dead person." Where had that come from? I certainly did not mean to say that. Snape took a closer look at me, and recoiled suddenly in shock.

"Potter? But y-you're dead!"

"I just said that, _Professor._"

He was beyond shocked, that was obvious. In fact, he seemed quite unsteady, as though he were likely to pass out any minute. Finally, after much blinking and stuttering, he managed to ask me the question I had been wondering about since I woke up.

"How?"

I smirked, amused at his apparent inability to form coherent sentences, and answered with a simple, "I have no idea."

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Snape dragged me into the Headmaster's office, and practically threw me at Dumbledore's desk.

"I found _this_," He snarled angrily, "wandering around outside."

Dumbledore was stunned. "What is the meaning of this?"

His confusion scared me. I had assumed that Dumbledore would know what was going on. Maybe even have something to do with it. It seemed that there really was no apparent explanation for all of this.

"So," I said, breaking the silence. "I'm here. I don't know if I'm alive or not, but I'm here. What now?"


	2. What Now?

_A/N: Wow. I didn't expect people to be that interested in my fic. I grovel before you. -bows- I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy! BTW, This is set in sixth year, about halfway through October. If there are any pairings, they will probably be slash. I will put warnings up when it starts, though, so those of you who are horrified by that sort of thing can avoid it._

Chapter 2: What Now?

I wasn't sure what I expected, but it certainly wasn't what happened. Dumbledore stood up and grabbed me by the shoulders. He looked angry.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Harry Potter."

He did not believe me. I really didn't expect him to. It was really quite unbelievable. He seemed to loom over me.

"Who are you_ really_?"

"I already told you, I'm Harry Potter."

"Prove it."

"I lived in a cupboard until I was eleven. In my third year, I met Sirius Black, found out he was my godfather, and agreed to live with him. That feeling that I was going to live with him instead of my bastard relatives is still one of my happiest memories." Then I lifted the hair over my forehead to show him my famous scar.

Snape looked a little dazed. "You lived in a cupboard?"

I nodded. " The one under the stairs. My Hogwarts letter was addressed to it. When the Dursleys saw it they moved me to the smallest bedroom because they thought the wizards were watching them."

Dumbledore sat down heavily. "You were dead. I watched you die. I even buried you."

"As far as I can tell, I still am," I answered.

"That is simply not possible," Snape put forth. He seemed annoyed, though I really didn't blame him. After all, one of his least favorite people in the world was dead and he couldn't even enjoy it. "Dead people do not walk and talk and breathe-"

"But that's just it," I interrupted. "I am not breathing. I do so only when I need to say something, but otherwise, nothing." And I promptly did not take one breath for the next ten minutes.

Dumbledore stood up once more. "We are taking you to see Madame Pomfrey. There is something wrong here, and I want her to examine you."

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While Madame Pomfrey looked me over, I questioned Dumbledore about what was going to happen.

"What about Ron and Hermione? Will they be told?"

Madame Pomfrey swatted me and told me to be still.

Dumbledore hesitated in answering my question. "...They are deeply in mourning for you. It would make them unbelievably happy to see you again. However, Mr. Weasly is not the best at keeping things quiet, and this is definitely something that needs to be kept secret. I feel it it best to not say anything."

"You have to tell them. Hermione is good at keeping secrets, and she can make sure Ron doesn't let anything slip."

Madame Pomfrey was becoming increasingly agitated as she tried to make me stop fidgeting whilst she poked and prodded me.

"If you feel that they can trusted, then I can bring them in to see you tomorrow afternoon. I will give you a vacant room near the dungeons for now, until something else can be arranged."

"I am through examining him." Madame Pomfrey announced, looking a little queasy. "There is no doubt about it, Albus, the boy may be awake, but he is certainly not alive. I could find no pulse, no heartbeat whatsoever, and I can think of no plausible explanation for any of it. There is no known case of anything like this. Frankly, I am at a loss. He doesn't have a treatable condition, as there is no cure for death, but I don't think we can just dismiss it either."

"We are by no means going to dismiss it," replied Dumbledore. "But for now I feel we should let Harry rest."

He gave me the directions to my temporary room, and I left. I had barely gotten out of my robes and into the bed before I fell aleep. It had been a long day.


	3. Friend or Foe?

_A/N: You like me! You really like me! Yes, de4d Lady, lease translate. I would be honored. As to the pairing, most likely Harry/Draco. But please, people, keep in mind that this is my first real fic, and I'm super nervous. I also have no idea where this is going to end up, so I might say one thing and then change my mind at the last minute._

Chapter 3: Friend or Foe?

I woke at dawn and was unable to go back to sleep. Unfortunately, we had not gone over what I was going to do while the rest of the school was out and about, since I obviously couldn't risk being seen. I lay there staring at the ceiling for a while, puzzling over my situation. I was dead. That much was obvious. I just couldn't fathom how I managed to wake up. It definitely wasn't a wizard thing, or else everyone would'nt have been so surprised. Maybe it was just a 'me' thing. The strangest things do seem to happen to me. I was still thinking when Snape opened my door.

"What are you doing here?"

He sneered. "Dumbledore insisted that since my rooms are closest to yours, I should bring you something to eat."

Typical Dumbledore. Always trying to get people to work together.

"Well, tell him that while I appreciate the effort, it is unneccessary, and that I am not hungry in the slightest."

He looked at me as if I was insane. "You haven't eaten for two weeks. Surely you must want something."

"Are you concerned for me, sir?" I asked the question mockingly, trying to make him mad.

Snape drew back as if I had hit him. "Of course not, Potter." And with that, he turned around and left, shutting the door loudly on the way out.

I smirked. Well, that got rid of him. _Now, what to do for the next few hours until Dumbledore brings Ron and Hermione to see me..._

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At ten thirty I noticed the snake. It was a black rat snake. I am not sure how I knew that, but I did. I was curled up in the corner, behind the bedpost. I knelt down to look at it.

-Hello.- It looked up at me.

-It's very rude to wake someone up when they're sleeping. Go away.-

I was persistent. Rude it may be, but I was desperate for conversation. -What's your name?-

-I said go away. I want to go back to sleep.-

-I just wanted to know your name...-

-Go away or I'll bite you.-

I decided to leave it alone after that.

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At three fifteen, just when I was about to lose my mind from boredom, Dumbledore opened my door. He was alone, but explained that Ron and Hermione were just outside the door. He had not told them anything except that there was someone who wanted to see them, and would leave it to me to explain. When he left, Hermione, tentatively opened the door and peered inside.

"Harry?" She was shocked. I heard another voice from behind her.

"What do you mean, 'Harry'? Who is it? Let me through!"

Ron, of course.

They both came through the door at the same time. Then they stopped. And stared.

I smiled. "Hello Ron. Hello Hermione. I'm back."


	4. Old Friends, New Problems

_A/N: Lo and behold, it is ANOTHER CHAPTER! Well, it is officially decided. SLASH! Whoo hoo!_

Chapter 4: Old Friends, New Problems

There was a moment of stunned silence after I said that. Finally, Ron broke out of his stupor.

"Bloody hell!"

And then Hermione: "Harry! We thought you were dead!"

"I was." _Merlin,am I going to have to go through this with everyone who finds out?_

Ron blinked. "So, what happened, then?"

"I woke up."

"You came back to life? But how?" Hermione was staring at me with something akin to awe on her face.

"I didn't come back to life. I just woke up." _I_am_ going to go through all this again,aren't I?_

Ron looked confused for a moment, but that soon gave way to disgust.

"You mean you're like a zombie or something? That's gross!" And he backed up against the door, trying to get as far away from me as he could.

"I honestly have no idea at all what I am," I answered truthfully.

Hermione was worried.

"Oh, Harry, have they taken you to the infirmary? If there's something wrong with you, you should really see Madame Pompfrey, she'll be able to help you for sure-"

"Already done," I said, interrupting her. "I don't exactly have a curable condition, Hermione."

She looked put out for a moment, then suddenly burst into tears. I stared, unable to think of what to do, since I didn't even know what had set her off.

"Oh, Harry, I'm so _sorry_!"

I was more than a little frustrated. "What have you got to be sorry for? _You_ didn't kill me!"

That just made her cry harder, and I, becoming increasingly alarmed, suggested that they leave before she got more upset. Ron, still looking at me as if I had three heads, agreed, and quickly took his leave, dragging a sobbing Hermione behind him.

After the door had closed, I shook my head disbeievlingly.

"I will never understand the way girls think."

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About twenty minutes later, Dumbledore came in, that damn twinkle in his eyes like always.

"So how did it go?"

"Hermione was okay until she started sobbing, and Ron acted like I had a contagious disease." I paused. "Pretty well, actually, considering the circumstances."

He smiled sadly at me. "I don't suppose ther is anything I can do?"

"Yes, there is." I paused again, wondering whether I should tell him or not. "I want Malfoy to be told."

Dumbledore looked at me strangely. "I was under the impression that Mr. Malfoy and yourself are hardly friends."

"I want him to know."

"May I ask why?"

I sneered at him. _Not like me at all_, I realized, but I would examine the facets of my new personality later. "No, you may not. I have my reasons. I trust him not to tell anyone. That should be enough for you."

Dumbledore looked reluctant, but he agreed.

"Very well. Tomorrow at-"

"Eleven," I broke in. "He has a free period then."

He nodded and left, with another strange glance, as though he could not recognize me anymore. I sighed, and tried to come up with interesting ways to pass the time until the next day. It was going to be a while, and I couldn't sleep the _whole_ time.


	5. Enemies With Benefits

_A/N: I guess it's pretty obvious by now what the pairing will be, but just in case some of you haven't figured it out yet...HPDM, ppls! w00t! BTW, as you can tell from this chapter, I can NOT write sex scenes. If that bugs anyone, then too bad, cuz I don't feel like asking someone else to do it for me. Oh, and **Dae Hellion**,shhhh! Don't tell everyone!_

_THE SLASH STARTS NOW!_

**Chapter 5: Enemies With Benefits**

When Malfoy came in the next day I was still in bed, trying not to watch the clock. He shut the door, turned to look at me, and stopped dead.

"Potter?"

"In the flesh."

As I got out of the bed he stalked forward and shoved me up against the wall. His hands were on either side of my shoulders, and his nose was almost touching mine. He was breathing a little harder than usual.

"Everyone was saying you were dead. I wondered if it was true." He sounded like he had been worried.

"I guess you know now."

He smirked. "I guess I do."

And then he kissed me. Hard. I immediately turned it around so that I was the one pinning him to the wall. He did not seem to mind it that much. It was, after all, a position he had been in many times since September. Ever sinceone very..._interesting_ detention.

"Where have you been?" He asked while I focused on unbuttoning his shirt.

"Around. Stop talking, I can't concentrate."

We got our shirts off with little trouble and moved on to...other things.

It was a very pleasant reunion, to say the least.

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We were still basking in the afterglow when Malfoy sat up and looked at me.

"You look different."

"_Really?_" My voice was heavy with sarcasm.

"Yes, _really_. You're pale, your eyes are all sunk in, and you look like you haven't eaten since I last saw you. I other words, you look dead. And you still haven't told me where you were."

"Thank you for your kind observations, Malfoy. I'll make sure to get a tan before I force you to look at me again."

"And you're acting different, too. What happened to you, Potter?"

I rolled my eyes and sat up to look at him. "I died."

He was beyond confused. "Explain."

And I did. I told him the whole story, what there was to tell of it. When I got to Ron and Hermione, he snorted, making a comment about how that was 'just like the weasel'. I swatted him.

"Shut up."

"Make me."

As it turns out, it is very hard to talk when you are being kissed.

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"So, you're dead."

"Yes."

"And I just had sex with you."

"Yes..."

"So, what does that make me?"

"Lucky?"

He threw a punch at me. I ducked. We laughed.

"You'd better leave soon, or Dumbledore will think I've killed you."

He seemed reluctant to leave. "He wouldn't really think that, would he?"

"I have no doubt he is already wondering what is going on. Ron and Hermione only lasted about twenty minutes. You've been here for three hours."

Malfoy grimaced. "Snape'll throw a fit."

"He's the first person who saw me. I had just climbed out of that ghastly marble thing they put me in. He thought I was a student."

Malfoy snickered. "I bet he was surprised."

I smirked. "He took points and tried to give me detention. When he realized it was me he almost fainted."

"I would have liked to see that."

"You take too much joy in the suffering of others."

"That I do." Malfoy stopped for a moment. "I should get going. They'll be missing me."

"Okay."

He left. I laid down and started counting ceiling tiles.


	6. Plans

_A/N: Okay, Chapter 6! How many of you were surprised by the last chapter? Just so you know my fic is now available in Spanish, courtesy of de4d lady. Umm...I just got back from my three week vacation, which was when I wrote most of this, so I might be a slower in updating now. Please don't hate me! Next chapter, Harry gets his new wand, and (hopefully, if I'm not too lazy) goes back to school._

**Disclaim Her:** I guess I should have put one of these up on the first five chapters, huh? Although I guess it's pretty obvious that I don't own Harry Potter anyway. if I wrote the Harry Potter books, they would be full of slashy Harry/Draco goodness! So there!

**Chapter 6: Plans**

The next day Dumbledore came in with the news that he had decided how I was going to continue my education. He also tried to get me to to eat something.

"I'm not hungry."

"Harry, you have been awake for three days, and you have not eaten anything. Not to mention the two weeks you were...well..."

"Dead." I finished. "I'm not going to eat anything."

"You have to eat something."

"Or what, I'll die of starvation?"

Dumbledore decided to leave it at that, and move on to his other business. He had come up with a plan. I was going to continue as though nothing had happened. We would say that it had been a plan to protect me from Voldemort, but that since it had not worked, we were giving up on it.

"You're crazy. They won't buy it. No one is that stupid. No one."

He calmly explained that it wouldn't matter if they didn't believe it, because there was no other plausible explanation. I was forced to agree with that. He then told me that, in light of the circumstances, it was best if I had my own room.

"I couldn't agree more, sir." If had my own room, I wouldn't have to use the room of requirement every time I wanted to sleep with Malfoy anymore. That had gotten extremely annoying. Not to mention all the suspicion from my dorm mates.

"Of course, you will have a teacher check on you often to make sure you are doing well."

Damn.

"Since you seem to have settled into this room, it seems logical to use this one. Decorate it as you see fit and set the password to whatever you want it to be."

"I would need my wand for that, Sir." You idiot...

"Ah, of course," Dumbledore seemed a little embarrassed at his lapse of thought. "We will take you to get a new one tomorrow. Your old was burned at your burial."

"Thank Merlin they didn't opt for a cremation." I muttered under my breath.

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Ron and Hermione came by again that afternoon, and though Ron still shuddered when he looked at me, he seemed to be making an effort. Hermione, on the other hand, hugged me more times in ten minutes than I had been hugged in my entire I told them about the plan that Dumbledore had come up with.

"That's bloody crazy! Do they actually think anyone is going to fall for that?"

"I really don't care either way. Let them all find out."

"Harry!" Hermione looked shocked by my lack of righteous anger. "You can't just tell everyone! What if Voldemort finds out?"

"Finds out what? That his enemy is dead?"

"Immortal, Harry!"

"Do you really think I'm immortal?"

"Well, you died and woke up..."

"But I didn't come back to life."

We continue on in that vein until Dumbledore returned. He said that Ron and Hermione had to leave or they would be late for potions, and told me that I would return to class the day after we got my new wand.

Ron and Hermione left, and I tried to prepare myself for what was to come.


	7. Conversations

_A/N: No complaining about the wait! This chapter is almost twice as long as my other ones, so it took me about twice as long. And, just so you guys know, I had this whole thing planned out as a Harry/Sev romance before I decided that Harry/Draco is much easier to work with. I might incorporate some of that later in the story, if you guys are interested. And, I hate to repeat what every other author says, but reviews DO make me write faster. If I get don't get a lot of reviews, I assume that people aren't liking it. Plus, if you don't like it and you review to tell me what I'm doing wrong, I can work on fixing it. So, basically, reviews happy author._

**Disclaim Her: Die, blood suckers! -beats at lawyer with her laptop- Harry Potter is mine! Muahahahaha! ...okay, maybe not really, but I can dream, can't I?**

**Chapter 7: Conversations**

By the time Dumbledore arrived to take me to get my wand, I was ready to get out of that room. I had been pacing for at least half an hour. I had even made another attempt to talk to the snake, which was still spending all its time sleeping in the corner. It bit me, and I decided not to bother it again. Ever.

"Ah, Harry, my boy. Are you ready to go?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, I'm sure," I mumbled.

"Good. You will be under the invisibility cloak until we get to Ollivander's."

"Then what? How are we going to explain...this?"

"You will see."

Damn him for being so secretive. This was me we were talking about, here. I had a right to know what he had planned. Not that he would keep it a secret from averybody else, mind you. I was sure the entire Order knew what was going on.

Of course I didn't say anything about it.

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"I have a question." We had just gotten back from Diagon Alley to get my new wand (Yew, eleven inches, Unicorn hair). Dumbledore had just given Ollivander the explanation he hed come up with for everyone else. Somehow I didn't think he bought it, though.

"Yes Harry?"

"What about Quidditch? Will I be able to play? I mean, I don't have any unfair advantages now or anything?"

"Well, as far as anyone will know, you have only been in hiding. The professors will know the truth, and undoubtedly Severus will push for a Quidditch ban, but I see no reason why you should be kept from playing."

That statement brought to light a question which had been vaguely floating around in my head since I first got settled in.

"How is Professor Lupin? Have you told him?

"I was going to wait until you were ready."

"Did he take it hard? My death, I mean."

Dumbledore smiled sadly. "He did not react to your death as badly as he reacted to the fact that you appeared to kill yourself."

I was floored. I had completely forgotten about that little aspect of my death.

"By the way," continued Dumbleldore, "Why _did_ you kill yourself?"

"I didn't!"

He just gave me one of those piercing looks, like he knows that you're lying about something.

"Look, I was just leaning over the edge of the astronomy tower, and the next thing I knew I was waking up in that horrible marble thing you had built for me. Do me a favor: next time I die, don't seal the door after putting me inside. It was almost impossible to break through."

Dumbledore looked surprised. "It was supposed to be unbreakable. Even I couldn't have broken through that door."

I shifted awkwardly under his gaze. "Can I go now?"

He nodded. "I will see you in the morning, Harry. Be careful going back to your room."

"I will, sir."

I left as fast as I could.

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I ran into Malfoy just outside my room. I was under the invisibility cloak, but that doesn't stop someone from feeling it if you run into them. He looked aroung wildly for a moment before realizing that his mystery assailant was not visible. Then recognition dawned on his face. I was the only one in the castle who had an invisibility cloak.

"Potter?"

I grabbed his arm and pulled him into my room. Before the door was even closed all the way I had taken off my cloak and was kissing Malfoy fervently. He moaned into my mouth and that just made me kiss him harder. I reluctantly broke the kiss after a few moments and pulled him over to sit on the bed. There were things to talk about.

"What were you doing out in the hall? I thought you couldn't leave this room."

"I was coming from Dumbledore's office. I just got my new wand. It was lucky that I ran into you out there though, because I had to talk to you."

"Yeah...lucky." He looked embarrassed.

"You were coming to see me, weren't you?"

"Maybe..."

I laughed. "I wanted to tell you that I'm coming back to classes tomorrow."

He sat up quickly. "What? How? What are you going to tell people?"

"That I faked my death to hide from Voldemort. That it didn't work so I'm coming back."

He snorted. "I wonder how long it'll hold until the Daily Prophet comes up with something scandalous to replace that story."

"My bet is seven and a half minutes."

"I was thinking four."

I laughed again. It felt good. I had not really laughed since Malfoy's last visit. "I'll be keeping these rooms, just so you know."

He licked his lips. "Really."

"Yes. I can set my own password so even Dumbledore couldn't get in if I didn't want him to."

"That's great."

"The password is 'absolution'. Come by whenever you feel like it."

He looked stunned for a moment before nodding. "Okay. Maybe I will."

I smiled.


	8. Not So Secret Secrets

_A/N: Okay, so I tried being nice and that didn't work, so Im telling you that there will be no more updates unless I get at least ten reviews for this chapter. Please? Pretty please with Harry on top?_

**Chapter 8: Not-So-Secret Secrets**

I went to the Great Hall for breakfast. No one even really noticed anything out of the ordinary at first. Nothing happened until Dean said "Hey, Harry, would you pass the-" and then began choking when he realized who he was speaking to. Then, of course, all hell broke loose.

There was shouting and people were jumping up to get a glimpse of me. It was a bit annoying really. I stood up.

"Would all of you just shut the_ hell_ up?"

I had not spoken that loudly, but everyone definitely heard me. Dumbledore stood up, a disapproving expression of his face. It appeared I had made him mad.

"That's ten points from Gryffindor for language, Mr. Potter."

That just made everyone become more frenzied as they realized that it really was their 'dead' savior standing in front of them. The shouting resumed, only now it was all directed at me. I caught a glimpse of Malfoy over at the Slytherin table. He smirked at me, and I countered with a glare that could kill. The noise level reaching ear-piercing pitch, I turned my attention back to the crowd.

"Yes. It's me. Now shut up, will you? I'm trying to eat my breakfast. If you have questions, I sure as hell don't feel like answering them now. Talk to Dumbledore if you're so desperate for answers."

I sat back down andbegan eating a piece of toast. Everybody stared. Dumbledore sighed, and began speaking again.

"A further ten points, Mr Potter. I do not want to hear you speaking like that again." He looked more amused than angry, really. "As for the rest of you, we felt that the best way to keep Mr. Potter safe from Voldemort was to fake his death. Unfortunately, it did not seem to work, so we gave up on that plan."

I snorted. The students, who were more fixated on me than the Headmaster, looked at him in disbelief. He merely smiled obliviously and sat down. Almost immediately the Gryffindors started shouting questions at me, and the other houses started making their way toward my table, ready to plague me with endless questioning. I got up, muttered a goodbye to Ron and Hermione, and rushed out of the hall.

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I sat through my classes, barely hearing what was being said, only responding when specifically addressed. Potions was by far the worst, though. Snape used every chance to belittle and criticize me, as if he were trying to make up for lost time. I was ready to curse him through the wall by the time class was over.

Finally, at the end of the day, I headed to my room, glad to be away from the prying eyes of the world. I was just getting started on my homework when my door opened. I ignored it, assuming it was Ron or Hermione coming to see if I was okay.

"Hey."

Not the voice I was expecting, but welcome all the same. I looked up and smirked at Malfoy.

"I wasn't expecting you to come so soon."

I got up from the desk I had conjured earlier that afternoon and walked over to him. We met somewhere in the center of the room and kissed. It was just getting heated when I vaguely registered the sound of the door opening again.

"WHAT the HELL is going on?"

It was Ron. Of course.

We drew apart quickly and tried for a moment to look as though we had not been doing anything. Needless to say, it didn't work.

"Harry, what were you and Malfoy just doing? What's he doing here in the first place?"

It was better than I expected. At least he was giving me a chance to talk. Malfoy, however, saw it as a chance to excape. "I'll just be leaving..."

I grabbed Malfoy by the back of his shirt. "_You_ are not going anywhere, Malfoy. You are especially not going to leave me here all alone to explain all this to Ron."

Malfoy smirked. "Oh, of course not. Because he's so much more likely to listen to me."

Ron gaped. "I will ask this one more time: What the hellis going on?"

I sighed. "Where's Hermione? She'll want to hear this."

"I'm right here." Hermione came into the room, shutting the door behind her. "I followed the sound of Ron shouting."

I shot a grin at Malfoy. "Shall we tell them then?"

He grinned back. "I suppose so."


	9. Explanations and Explosions

_A/N: Well, it took you long enough. I SAID I wouldn't update until I got ten reviews. Maybe you'll listen to me this time. I know you guys are reading this. I'm just asking for some feedback. The same thing goes for this chapter. Ten reviews. That's all I'm asking for. And much thanks goes to Sakurabound, who read and reviewed all the chapters in one day. Go read her fic, Double Looks. It rocks, and she updates almost every day, unlike me. : P_

_P.S.: I changed it to where this takes place about halfway through December instead of October._

_Disclaim Her: I own nothing. Except Draco Malfoy's soul. Oh, wait...I don't even own that. -pouts-_

**Chapter 9: Explanations and Explosions**

"Well, you see, it started about two weeks after term started. We-"

"Two weeks after term started?" Ron was incensed. "It's almost Christmas! You two have been...for four months?"

"Yes." The answer had come from Malfoy. Ron glanced at him before looking at me plaintively.

"Tell me you're joking. Tell me this is some sort of practical joke. I mean...I didn't even know you were gay!"

"I didn't tell you because I didn't know how you would react. Not only to me being gay, but to Malfoy."

"Harry, you should have known being gay wouldn't matter," Hermione finally entered the conversation. "I don't see why you couldn't have at least told us that much. That way it wouldn't have been such a shock when we found out about..." She gestured at Malfoy. "_him_."

Malfoy was getting more and more uncomfortable. "I really should go."

I nodded. This was getting personal, and I could understand his not wanting to be there. "See you, Malfoy."

"Potter." He nodded his goodbye and took his leave, not stopping to even acknowledge Ron or Hermione. They watched him go silently before turning back to me.

"I'm sorry you had to find out this way. But, with all this other shit going on, I figured that this would be a really bad time to say anything."

Ron had calmed down somewhat. "It's okay, Harry. Well-I mean-it's not okay, but I can deal with it. I just-I wish you had said something."

I snorted. "What could I say? 'Hey, guys, I'm back form the dead, and by the way, I've been shagging Malfoy since September'?"

Hermione blinked in surprise. "You have sex?"

"What did you think we did, talk about our feelings?"

"Well, no, I just thought you might wait awhile before taking that step."

I laughed bitterly. "The way I saw it, I wasn't going to live to be seventeen, and I didn't want to die a virgin. And, as it turns out, I was right, wasn't I?"

Hermione blinked back tears. "Oh, Harry, I never knew you felt that way! You just always looked so happy, and I didn't-I didn't-"

"It's okay. I didn't want you to know. It would just have been one more thing for you to worry about, and you were worrying so much already."

"We would have been better off worrying!" Ron had found his voice again. "You acted so happy all the time, then you go and kill yourself, leaving us with no reason why! You think that wouldn't have caused us some worry?"

"I didn't kill myself!" I was tired of having that thrown in my face. Why did everyone think that I had done myself in?

"Harry," Hermione said gently, as if speaking to a small child. "You did kill yourself. We saw you. You jumped off the astronomy tower while we were in care of magical creatures class. We were wondering where you were when Seamus shouted that someone was about to jump. We got there just in time to see you hit the ground." Her voice broke at the end.

"I didn't kill myself," I said disbelievingly. "I wouldn't. There was too much counting on me. I couldn't let everyone down. If I had committed suicide, I would remember. Wouldn't I? I mean, I remember everything else, I even remember hitting the ground, but...I can't remember why I was falling in the first place!" I was getting nervous. I'd thought I remembered everything, but now that I was trying to recall what had happened, there was a large blank spot where that memory should be.

"It's alright, Harry. It doesn't matter, what matters is that you're here, and you're okay, and you were telling us how you got together with Malfoy." Hermione had decided to get the conversation back on topic.

"It wasn't really anything special. We were in detention, we started fighting, the next thing I know I had him shoved up against a wall, snogging."

Ron looked sick. "Please, Harry. No details. Ever."

I smirked. "I can't promise that. Sorry."


	10. The Scent of Blood

_A/N: I'm thinking of renaming the story to 'Dead Like Me'. If you like it, review and tell me. If you don't, review and tell me. Just whatever you do, please review, people! I am a review whore, ok? Just like before. Ten reviews. If I get fifteen I might be tempted to make the next chapter extra long!_

_Disclaim Her: The Harry Potter series belongs to J. K. Rowling. I am just using her characters to satisfy my own twisted little fantasies._

Chapter 10: The Scent of Blood

It was about a week later that I began to notice something...strange. I could hear everything. And I do mean everything. I could hear private conversations going on in the girls' dormitory from the hallway outside the Gryffindor common room. And I could smell things that were impossible to smell. I could smell glass, and heat, and when someone was lying. It was very disturbing, to say the least. I tried to ignore it, or at least keep other people from noticing, but I had to say something when Malfoy walked into my room smelling like blood. For the third time.

"If you're going to do that to yourself, Malfoy, than at least don't do it right before you come to see me. It's distracting when the person you're having sex with reeks of blood."

He paled. "How did you know?"

I rolled my eyes. "As I just said, I can smell the blood all over you. So, what got you upset this time?"

He sat down on my bed while I finished up my Charms essay. "It wasn't anything really. I don't want to talk about it."

I sighed, and walked over to him before straddling him. "You," I said in a low voice. "are going to kill yourself one of these days." I kissed him slowly, running my fingers over one of the scars on his arm. "I don't want you to die."

Malfoy smirked. "And why would that be?"

"Well, if you were dead, then I wouldn't have anyone to screw."

He laughed and pulled me down on top of him. "Can you believe that they think you're the one taking it up the arse?"

I smirked. "I know. You, on top? Please."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

I just laughed.

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The next day, in Potions, I discovered something else. Snape asked me how one would go about making an extremely potent healing potion. It was not on the sixth year curriculum, and I suspect it was just for an excuse to mock me and give me detention.

He was probably pretty disappointed when I gave him the exact formula and ingredients.

In fact, he was so disappointed he accused me of cheating and took twenty points from Gryffindor before giving me a detention. Not that I cared about the points or anything, but the detention bugged me. I had plans that night. And I still wanted to find out what, exactly, I 'was'.

At lunch Hermione sat next to me and started to whisper in my ear.

"Harry, I think I've found something. I want you to come to the library in your invisibility cloak after that detention."

I nodded and looked across the hall at Malfoy, who was glaring daggers at Hermione. I mouthed the word 'tomorrow', and he turned his glare on me before nodding sharply and turning back to Goyle who was waving a hand in front of his face, trying to get his attention. I smirked and grabbed a piece of toast to eat. So far, toast was the only thing I could get down. Everything else made me want to be sick. I suppose dead people don't need to eat that much. Hermione gave me a sharp look that clearly said 'You need to eat more' before getting up and heading to Arithmancy. I finished my toast and left for Defense before I was late. The last thing I needed was Professor Lupin hovering over me because I couldn't get to class on time, thinking I was sick.

**_Now...REVIEW!_**


	11. More Secrets?

_A/N: I love you guys! 12 reviews in twenty-four hours! Ummm...since it was an exact tie as for how many people wanted me to change the name, it will be staying as is or now. And since I have been getting some questions about this, Harry does not look like a rotting corpse, although by all means he should be after being dead for two weeks. Instead, picture him kind of like he normally looks, except extra pale. Yes, Draco does cut, if you did not catch that in the last chapter. And, for the one person who wanted me to get chapters out faster, it only takes ten reviews to get me writing as fast as I can._

_Disclaim Her: I love cheesecake!1_

**Chapter 11: More Secrets?**

Detention was rather boring actually. I arrived in Snape's classroom just after dinner, with my invisibility cloak tucked into my robe pocket so I wouldn't have to go back to the tower before meeting Hermione. I was wondering what she had found, since even Dumbledore had no idea what had happened to me. Snape had been sitting at his desk grading papers and only paused to glance up and shoot a quick glare at me before instructing me to clean out all the cauldrons. Menial labor I was used to, so I finished it up pretty quickly and made my way to the library under my cloak.

It was mostly empty, except for Madame Pince, Hermione, and some Ravenclaw fifth year. I headed over to Hermione's corner, poking her shoulder to let her know I was there. She nodded slightly and walked over to the Restricted Section, showing a pass to Madame Pince on the way. When we reached the roped off area she grabbed me and pulled me into an aisle that was out of the view of the rest of the library. I tore off my cloak and began questioning Hermione.

"What did you want to tell me? And why did I have to wear the cloak? Couldn't you have just shown me what you wanted in the common room?"

"No, because this is a book that you can't take out of the library without express permission. It's about Necromancy, and there are very strict rules about that sort of thing at Hogwarts."

"Necromancy? As in, raising the dead as minions? I'm no one's minion, Hermione."

"I know!" Hermione looked tired. I wondered how long she had stayed up the night before researching this. "But there's a passage in here about a species of creatures that inhabit human forms, but who's powers only manifest after the body dies!"

"So...what? I'm some type of creature that has to die before it gets any powers? This is some major shit, Hermione. Are you absolutely sure?"

"How can I be sure? They're only vaguely mentioned, but the book referred to them as Daemons, and they supposedly remain conscious and unchanging for hundreds of years after they physically die."

"Great. Apparently, not only am I some kind of wierd creature, I'm an evil being from Hell."

"I didn't say that, Harry. I just said that's what they were called. And I'm not saying that that's what you are, I'm just saying that it's the first thing I've found that describes anything remotely like your situation."

I sighed. I just wasn't going to get a break, was I? "Okay, first, we talk to Ron. I'm going to tell Malfoy tomorrow and see if he has anything to add, if he's even heard of these 'Daemon' things. Then, we go to Dumbledore and ask him what he thinks. Okay?"

Hermione smiled lightly. "Sounds like a plan."

She didn't know I could smell the fear and apprehension rolling off her in waves. She was hiding something from me, and whatever it was, it was scaring her.

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

When we got back to the Common Room, Ron was asleep in one of the chairs by the fire. After deciding that the invisibility cloak was too small to cover the both of us safely, Ron had agreed to wait for us in the Common Room until we got back.

"Ron!" I poked him hard with my wand, accidentally shooting off some sparks.

"Bloody hell!" Ron jumped up and quickly put out the very small fire that had started burning on his shoulder. "What was that for?"

"I was just trying to wake you up," I said apologetically. "Sit back down. We have something to tell you."

We explained what Hermione had found, and what we were going to do. I have to say, Ron took it amazingly well, considering. He only referred to me as a beast from Hell once, which was a lot better than I expected. Then he threw a lamp at me telling me to stay back, and backed up into a corner as if he expected me to blow him up or something. Typical Ron overreaction. Finally, he calmed down enough to demand that he go with us when we went to see Dumbledore.

Of course I told him he could go with us, but just as with Hermione, he seemed scared of something. I didn't know what they both knew that I didn't, but I was going to find out as soon as possible.


	12. Q & A

_A/N: You guys ROCK! Ummmmmm...now that you've proved you can handle ten reviews, can we try for fifteen? Pretty please? I'll be really happy... To answer a question that someone asked me, This takes place about halfway through sixth year. I am ignoring HBP completely, because I hated it._

Disclaimer

**Chapter 12: Q & A**

The next day I dragged Malfoy into my room as he was walking by on the way to his next class.

"What the hell was that, Potter? I'm going to be late for Transfiguration."

"You can be a little late. I wanted to ask you something before I go to see Dumbledore."

"Yeah? And you think that whatever this is, I'll know the answer?"

"Well, I'm positive that you'll at least know more than I do. What do you know about Daemons?"

He froze. "Why would you want to know anything about _them_?" He spat out the word 'them' as he used to do with my name.

"Because Hermione thinks that I'm one of _them_."

"You aren't."

"How would you know?"

"Because Daemons are violent, and predominantly evil, with a taste for blood."

I was willing to bet that this was why Ron had been scared.

"Okay...Aside from that, anything else you know about them?"

"Well, they have an extremely sensitive sense of smell, and they can hear about five times better than most humans. They also have some weak metamorphagus abilities, but they have to physically die before they come into any of their powers. They remain dead for two to three weeks before they reawaken, even though they never really come back to life-" He stopped. "Oh, shit."

"Yeah." Even though I hadn't told him everything about my heightened senses, he had a good enough idea to know that he was pretty much describing what had happened to me.

"Have you told anyone else?"

"Hermione was the one that figured it out, and we told Ron last night. We're going to tell Dumbledore after dinner."

"Don't."

"Why not?"

"Just trust me, that's the last thing you want to do. It's bad enough that you told the Weasel."

"Don't call him that." I said it out of reflex, then I thought about what he had just said. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean that by now probably half of Gryffindor will have heard about how you're a Daemon."

"Ron won't tell them, and anyway, does it really matter?"

"Yes. The world is very prejudiced when it comes to...your...species." He sounded pained when he came to the part about 'my species'.

"How do you know so much about Daemons, anyway?"

"You forget who I work for. The Dark Lord made it a point to get the Daemons on his side in the last war. My father told me about them."

"Ah. Advantages of being a Death Eater's son, huh?"

"You could call it that."

"All right. I won't tell Dumbledore if you really think it would be a bad idea. I trust your judgement."

"Good. I'll see you later, ok?" If I didn't know better, I would have said he was nervous.

"Ok. Try not to get detention for McGonagall."

"I won't."

And with a final smirk, he left.

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

For the rest of my free period I talked to Hermione. Finally the tension between us started to really annoy me and I decided to confront her about the book.

"Hermione, what else was there about Daemons in that book?"

She fiddled with her quill nervously. "Nothing. Why do you ask?"

"Because you're lying. I can smell it." I decided to be completely honest with her.

Hermione looked at me with more than a little fear in her eyes. "It-it said..."

"That Daemons are bloodthirsty evil creatures that revel in the joy of the kill?"

"No!"

"You're lying again."

"O-okay, it said something like that..."

"Do you believe I'm like that?"

"Of course not, Harry! I just wasn't sure if-"

"Hermione, this is starting to get on my nerves. Tell me the truth or leave."

"What do you want me to say, Harry? That I'm scared to death of you?"

"Are you?"

"No-well-maybe-I mean-I don't know!"

I sat back and smiled. "That wasn't so hard, now was it? Telling the truth for once? Now, let me enlighten you. I am, as far as I can tell, one of these Daemon things. I might not be a pushover anymore, but that doesn't mean that I'm a bloodthirsty monster. I don't plan on killing you if you make me mad, and I don't want you to think that I would."

Hermione was fighting back tears. I almost felt sorry for her. Almost. Really, if she had absorbed anything she read in that book then she should have realized that she couldn't lie to me anymore. I awkwardly said goodbye and left her in the library cradling her Potions book.


	13. Disturbing Revelations

_A/N: Thank you guys so much! I love you! Now, I'mprobably won'tturn this into a pairing, but here's a little something for all you HGSS shippers. This is just a filler chapter, really. I needed a reason for Hermione to have an all access pass to the Restricted Section, and this is what I came up with. Just so you guys know, I have no idea where I 'm going with this. I am making it up as I go along._

_Disclaim Her: Away, demons! -waves wand at swarming lawyers- Don't make me get my flying monkeys!_

**Chapter 13: Disturbing Revelations**

When I told them about how I wasn't going to go to Dumbledore, Ron asked me why.

"Because I told Malfoy and he told me that it would be a very bad idea."

"You trust him more than us?" Ron almost sounded...hurt.

"No, but he's more rational. If you think about it, it makes a lot of sense that he wouldn't be all that happy finding out that his precious little Gryffindor is a Daemon."

"But what about Professor Lupin?" Trust Hermione to come up with that excuse.

"He's only dangerous once a month, and there's a potion he can take to deal with it."

"Are you saying you're dangerous?" Ron was getting nervous again.

"No, I'm saying that the rest of the world will think I am, and even if Dumbledore is okay with it, they won't be. Do you think that they will want a dark creature takng classes with their children?"

"I guess not." At least Hermione could see reason. "You're right. It's probably best if we don't tell him. After all, the last thing you need is to get kicked out school because of something you have no control over."

"I agree completely."

She laughed.

Ron looked a little put out. "Why aren't you allowed to check that book out again? I wouldn't mind seeing it."

"Because," said Hermione exasperatedly. "Necromancy is a very sensitive subject, and not only are there laws about letting underage people study it, there's also the reaction of the wizarding world to think about. Hermione Granger, best friend of Harry Potter, studying Necromancy, the most controversial branch of magic there is?"

"Hermione, how did you get an all-access pass tothe Restricted Section in the first place? It doesn't seem like the kind of thing teachers just hand out."

"Professor Lupin probably gave it to her," said Ron. "Right?"

"No. I asked him for one, and he gave me this speech about how it's 'unethical' for teachers to give that sort of thing to students for no reason."

"Well then how did you get it?"

Hermione blushed. "Snape, um, gave it to me."

"He did?" Ron asked. "How did you get that to happen?"

She ducked her head and mumbled something I couldn't quite understand.

"What was that?"

"I-well-I kind of...seduced him."

"_What!_" Ron stood up, fury and horror written all over his face.

I laughed. "You're joking, right?"

"No, unforunaltely, I'm not joking. It was in last week's potions class, you know, when I told you I had some questons to ask? After you left, I shortened my skirt, unbuttoned the top few buttons of my blouse and stayed after class to 'talk' to him."

"I do _not_ want to hear this." Ron sounded sick.

I was shaking in laughter. It was so unbelievably unlike Hermione to do something like that. And what was funnier was that Snape fell for it.

"I kind of, you know, did all those things Lavender and Parvati do around Harry. In the end all it took was a little flirting, some innuendo, and he caved."

"Oh, god, how am I going to face him in class after this?"

"The same way I have." Hermione was glaring. "With a straight face. If anyone finds out about this, I am going to blame you, I hope you know that."

"Hermione, what were you going to do if he wanted you to...deliver?" I was trying not to fall off my chair laughing while I asked her that.

"Well, I figured that I'd slap him, accuse him of molesting a student at the top of my lungs, then use that to blackmail him into giving me the pass."

"You should have been in Slytherin."

"Why, _thank you,_ Harry."

Ron choked.

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Our next Potions class was...interesting, to say the least. Now that I knew what to look for, I noticed that Snape was jumpy when he walked by our table, and that he kept shooting strange looks at Hermione. It was very hard to keep a straight face, especially with Ron trying not to throw up in the seat next to me. Hermione was glaring at us to act normal, but it damn near impossible just to not burst out laughing. Finally, the ordeal was over, though I had managed to lose twenty points for Gryffindor by the end of class. Hermione was livid.

"I can't _believe_ you two! I should never have told you!"

"You should never have done it, that's what you should have done."

"It was necessary! I did it for Harry!"

"Hermione," I broke in, sensing a huge fight about to break out. "While I appreciate what you did, there probably _was_ a better way to get the pass."

"But I asked all the other teachers, and none of them would-"

"And Ron, if Hermione hadn't done that, there is a very good chance that we would still have no idea what I am."

"But you just said-"

"So I want both of you to play nice. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

They sounded rather disappointed. If I didn't know better, I would say they almost enjoy fighting with each other. Hmmm...


	14. Okay, enough is enough

_A/N: Okay. I am on over 25 people's favorite lists, and over 80 people's alert list, and yet only 12 of you can stick around long enough to review? It doesn't take long to write a couple of words, and they might not mean much to you, but they mean a lot to me. Umm...I'm sorry this took a little longer to get out, but my mom has been making me get counseling for my 'cutting problem', and has been watching me like a hawk for any signs of depression. This fic is, to her, not just a sign of depression, but an offence against god, what with the slash and all. So, if a chapter takes a while to get out, be patient, cause I promise I don't plan on giving up on this any time soon._

_Disclaim Her: Review and I'll give you the rights to my soul!_

**Chapter 14: Okay, enough is enough**

"You mean Granger put the moves on Snape?"

I had just told Malfoy about Hermione's effective, if a little disturbing, plan to get the library pass.

"Yes, and you won't tease her about it, because if you do then she'll know I told you."

"So?"

"_So_, I plan on keeping all of my limbs intact, okay?"

He laughed. We were sitting in my room, doing a History of Magic essay.

"How's this for an opening statement: '_Salazar Slytherin, one of the four founders of Hogwarts, was a very influential man. Not only did he establish the single most hated house in all of Hogwarts history, but he also created a large bloodthirsty monster, which he then hid beneath the school where it would lie in wait until it could be set loose upon the student population_.'"

Malfoy sniffed in what could only be disdain. "I think that's a little inappropriate for our essay on great villains in wizarding history."

"Well, I think it's better than your essay on Dumbledore."

"He _is_ a villain!"

"I'm not disagreeing, I'm just saying that if you turn that in, you'll end up trapped in his office being force-fed lemon drops. Which aren't really lemon drops."

"They aren't?"

"No."

"Then what are they?"

"You don't want to know."

"Yes I do!"

If I didn't know that Malfoys were 'above such things', I would almost think he was whining.

"Trust me. You really don't."

He huffed and leaned back, crossing his arms. It was then that I noticed some dried blood on his sleeve. I grabbed his arm and pushed up the sleeve of his robe to reveal some poorly bandaged new cuts on his arm. I cursed.

"Damn it, Malfoy, what did I say about that?"

He jerked his arm back quickly, seeing that I was about to heal it. and evidently not wanting me to.

"You said that if I'm going to cut, at least don't do it right before I see you."

"Yes, but you see, what that really meant was 'stop'."

"No."

I sighed. He looked really determined about this. I shouldn't have been so surprised. It was, after all, something very important to him, though I couldn't see why.

"Alright, I'll shut up about it for now, but we _will_ talk about this eventually."

"Whatever."

Not really feeling in the mood for anything else, we said our goodbyes and he left.

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

On the way to defense, Ron and Hermione got in another fight, only this one ended with the two of them getting locked in a broom cupboard together. I was the one that locked the door. Malfoy walked up while I was watching the door rattle as Ron tried to force it open.

"What's up?" He seemed to have forgotten the somewhat less than friendly terms we had parted on the previous day.

"I locked Ron and Hermione in that closet right there."

"What?"

"Did you have a reason for doing that?"

"Not particularly."

"Oh."

It was around then that I realized that I had not gotten any sex in at least two days. And I was ready for some. I grabbed Malfoy by the shirt collar.

"Screw defense. I've missed a few lessons, I can miss a few more. We are going into that empty classroom over there and having sex. Right now."

He looked a little...worried, almost. I had just gone from mildly amused to horny as hell in three seconds flat with no warning whatsoever.

"What's with the mood change, Potter?"

"Don't ask questions."

We barely made it into the room with the door closed before he had his shirt off and started working on mine. I lost patience with his fumbling for the buttons and took it off myself. He had just started on his pants when the door opened.

"Get out of here, and fifty points from - POTTER?"

Bloody fucking hell. Snape had just walked in on us.


	15. Out of the Closet

_AN: Okay, you guys have been so nice and I appreciate it so much, and now I'm going to ask for 15 reviews. Pretty pretty please? I will love you forever! I'm on bended knee here! (okay, not really, hardwood floor is killer on the knees)_

_Disclaim Her: I love chicken! I could eat it all day!_

**Chapter 15: Out of the Closet**

I cursed.

"Dammit, I really must be losing my touch. I was _sure_ I put up a silencer before we got started!"

Snape was staring in shock.

"Potter...Malfoy...I...What the _hell_ is going on?"

I smirked. "That seems to be a popular question of late, Professor."

Malfoy was not amused. In fact he looked like he was hyperventilating. "Professor Snape, I can explain, I really can, I just-"

"Shut up, Malfoy," I interrupted him. "I doubt Snape is going to believe any excuse we can give him at the moment."

"Fine then, _you_ tell him what he just walked in on!"

"I will." I turned to Professor Snape, who had been following out conversation rather confusedly. "You, _sir_, just interupted us when we were about have sex on that desk over there." I pointed, and Snape stared at the offending piece of furniture. Malfoy laughed despite himself.

"You're going to give the poor man a heart attack, Potter."

Snape shook his head. "I must be dreaming. That is the only possible explanation for what I just walked in on."

I was thoroughly enjoying myself. While Snape tried to make sense of what was going on, I started back towards Malfoy.

"Now, Professor, I've told you what was going on, and now I'm afraid that I will have to ask you to leave. Unless you'd like to watch?"

He got look of disgust and horror on his face, and started backing out of the room quickly.

"I...have to...go...Potter...detention...tomorrow night. And every night...for the rest of the week."

With that he practically ran out, slamming the door behing him.

"Well, I guess we need to start putting up locking charms whenever we decide to have fun."

"You know Dumbledore will know by the end of the day, don't you?"

"What do I care if he knows or not? It's not like he can expel me for fucking you, is it?"

"No, but I am sure that he can bring you into his office for questioning. And I have no doubt that some of the questions will be quite personal."

"And I will say it again: What do I care?"

"I knew it! You really _do_ have no shame!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Look, can we finish what we started? We don't have a whole lot of time before someone will need to use this classroom."

"I don't know. Snape kind of ruined the mood, y'know?"

I laughed suddenly.

"...? What was that?"

"I was just thinking. Snape will probably have a hard time getting that image out of his head, that's all."

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

It was about two hours later that I remembered locking Ron and Hermione in the broom cupboard. I had completely forgotten becauseof the events that followed the incident. By the time I remembered which cupboard I had locked them in, it had been at least three hours. They came out looking very angry, and, if I do say so myself, quite thoroughly snogged. Hermione slapped me.

"Harry James Potter!"

The inhuman shriek almost peirced my extremely sensitive eardrums.

"How _dare_ you lock us in that closet! It was a rotten thing to do, even if-" She broke off, looking embarassed.

"Even if it helped you and Ron hook up?" I smirked at her suggestively, and she slapped me again.

"Hermione, I think if you slap Harry again, he'll have a hand shaped mark on his face for the rest of the day." Ron finally spoke up.

"Well he would deserve it!"

She really did sound rather like a harpy, now that I thought about it.

"I don't know...I kind of feel like thanking him, myself."

Hermione turned and gaped at Ron, who was turning very red very fast. I just couldn't resist.

"So, when's the wedding?"

Ron was right. One more slap, and I had a hand shaped mark on my face for the rest of the day.


	16. Barmy Old Codger

_AN: I love the people who review! You are my inspiration! There is nothing I like more than getting tons of reviews!_

_Disclaim Her: My leg hurts..._

**Chaper 16: Barmy Old Codger**

About an hour after dinner, Professor McGonagall came to the common room and told me to go the the Headmaster's office. It seemed that Snape had spilled the beans already. When I got to his office, he asked me to sit down.

"Harry."

I supressed a groan. He was going to lecture me, there was no doubt about it.

"I have to say, I am disappointed in your behavior as of late. Granted, things have been...complicated, recently, to say the least, but there are some things I cannot allow you to do."

I cocked an eyebrow. "What prompted this, Headmaster? Surely there is some reason you picked today to give me this lecture? Or did you just decide at random to lecture me today?"

He sighed, and closed his eyes wearily. "Professor Snape has given me some disturbing news. Please explain yourself."

For some reason I felt like frustrating him. "What exactly am I supposed to explain, sir?"

"You know very well what I am talking about, Harry."

"Actually, I am at a complete loss. Please elaborate. I'mdying to know what I did wrong."

"I am in no mood for this. If you will not cooperate-"

"Snape told you that he walked in on me and Malfoy, right?" I didn't feel like dealing with whatever 'consequences' there would be for not cooperating.

He nodded.

"Then I don't see anything to add."

"You were about to have sex in a classroom that was going to be used in twenty-five minutes. That is intolerable."

"Don't worry, we were finished long before that class got there."

He looked more than a little disturbed. "Harry, I am afraid that your...relationship will have to end."

I sat up, rigid. "And why should I do that?" I didn't give him time to answer. "Does this have something to do with his father? Because I already know that he is a Death Eater."

"Harry, my boy, you have to understand the risks-"

"I completely understand the risks. And I do not believe that your duties as headmaster extend to limiting relationships between consenting adults, even if they are your students."

"You are hardly an adult, Harry."

"I am sixteen years old. Legally, I am old enough to make my own decisions, at least in regards to who I sleep with. I am afraid that you have no control over what I choose to do with my time, Headmaster."

"You are my student. I have a responsibility to-"

"No. Your only responsibility(i) is that I get an education. And, frankly, I have to say that you haven't been doing a very good job of that."

"Surely you don't-"

"_And_, while I appreciate what you are trying to do...well, no, that's a lie, I don't appreciate it at all, actually, but I tolerate it. I've pretty much let you screw with my life however you wanted to up until now, but I'm getting kind of tired of it, and so I'll have to ask you politely to leave me the fuck alone, okay?"

"Harry, I must ask you not to use that kind of language while you are in my office."

"Give me a detention if you don't like hearing it. Sir. And you still haven't told me why Malfoy and I have to stop."

"Well, if Voldemort found out that the two of you are dating, then-"

"We are _not_ dating," I interjected angrily. He continued as if he had not heard me.

"-then he would only have something else to hurt you with. Do you want to be responsible for Mr. Malfoy's death?"

I glared at him, and it was a moment before I spoke. "You're a real bastard, you know that? Using that to get to me, when you _know_ how I was torturing myself about Sirius over the summer, how I was convinced that it was all my fault..." I shook my head slowly. "I'm not surprised, really. Now, if you don't mind, I think I'll go. Unless you have something else to burden me with?"

Dumbledore just shook his head, and Igot up to leavebefore he had a chance to change his mind.

It was just too easy to make him feel guilty. I couldn't leave him thinking that he had _hurt _me, or some such nonsense. I stopped when I got to the door, and looked over my shoulder.

"By the way," I added. "Hermione figured it out. I'm a Daemon. Sound familiar? You know, bloodthirsty monster?"

He paled, and I laughed as I climbed down the stairs. I might had just given away the only secret of any real worth that I had, but somehow I just couldn't bring myself to feel bad about it.


	17. He is NOT fucking me!

_AN: Hey! I love you all, and I want you all to go read **Mizz Moony Luver**'s fic, **Pureblood**! It is totally awesome, especially if you like vampires. Ummm...yeah, Harry has some kind of split personality disorder or something in this chapter. I blame his evil Daemon homicidal tendencies (which, by the way, are just going to get worse). Also, Hermione is kind of a bitch. I don't know what happened to her, I guess I just got a little out of control. : P_

_Disclaim Her: Ron Weasley is sooooo hot! -drool-_

**Chapter 17: He is NOT fucking me!**

"Harry, I've been thinking."

Hermione approached me inthe empty common room the next day after breakfast.

"Yeah? What about?"

"Well, that book said that Daemons' powers only manifest after they die, and as far as I know, you haven't developed any new ones yet, right?"

I grimaced, remembering that I had yet to tell my friends about my new 'abilities'. "Actually, Hermione, I kind of forgot to tell you..."

"You _have_ gotten powers?" I was already regretting deciding to tell her.

I nodded, and winced when she started screaming. It was a good thing we weren't surrounded by people, or my cover would have been blown.

"And you didn't _tell_ us? This is_ important_, Harry!" She was shaking in anger. I was a little angry myself, but was more curious about what put Hermione in that mood. All thoughts of concern flew out the window, however, when she continued in a different tone. "I bet you told Malfoy already, haven't you? Since you trust him so much more than us! Do you tell him everything that you won't tell us while he's _fucking_ you?"

That was it. I snapped. I stood up, livid, and stalked toward Hermione. She was almost cowering, and I vaguely noticed that my eyes were burning. It would not surprise me to find out that another 'power' had chosen this moment to appear.

"How _dare_ you," I hissed. "assume that you, of all people, have the_ right_ to say those things to me. I don't know what made you turn into a bitch all of a sudden, but you had damn well better get over it. Yes, I got new abilities. No, I did not tell you. And no, just for your information, I have not told Malfoy yet." I took a couple of deep breaths, trying to get my magic, which was swirling around me, under control. It would not be a good idea to lose control and kill Hermione, no matter how angry I was at her. After all, killing someone was surely worth expulsion, even if I was the Boy-Who-Wouldn't-Fucking-Die. I looked at her in contempt. "I am tempted to tell you to go away and never speak to me again."

"Harry." She was pleading with me. "Please don't. I don't know what came over me, I just- I feel like I'm being out of the loop, and I hate not being told what's going on."

"That is no reason for attacking me, Hermione. If you're going to do this every time you think you're not being told something..."

"I'm _not_, Harry, I promise! I just hate the thought that you'd go to _him_ before you'd come to us. It doesn't seem fair."

"Well, after this, I'll be sure to go to him first. At least he's _reasonable_ most of the time, unlike some people I could mention."

Hermione was crying. And I just couldn't feel anything but a burning hatred for her. "I am going to leave now. You will not talk to me for the rest of the day, and if you try, I cannot promise that you will leave uninjured. Do you understand?"

She nodded meekly, and I left, glaring at a couple of first years entering through the portrait hole. They backed away from me in what could only be fear, and I smirked, amused. I was unsure about what had brought on this sudden personality change in me, but I got the feeling it wasn't just teenage hormones.

HPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDM

It was later on that Ron approached me in the hallway.

"Harry? Do you know why Hermione is so upset?"

"As a matter of fact, I do, and I'm not sorry to say that the main reason she's so upset is because of me."

"What did you do?" He was shifting anxiously, almost like he was ready to run if necessary.

"Well, let's see, I retaliated violently when she insulted me in a way that I wold not tolerate, and I'm pretty sure that I terrified her with my evil glowy eyes."

"Your eyes glow now? Cool!"

I snorted. That's Ron for you. Totally ignore everything else I said and focus on the glowing eyes.

"If you would listen, I said I'm _pretty_ sure. And aren't you the least bit angry at me for terrorizing your girlfriend?"

Ron started as if I had surprised him with something. "She's not my girlfriend. We kind of decided after the whole you-locking-us-in-the-closet thing that we weren't really right for each other. I mean, she's got her _Victor_, and I've got...well..."

"Astunningpersonality?"

"Shut up, Harry. And about the other thing, I figure she must have said something pretty bad to make _you_ get angry."

"You're damn right it was bad!" I put forth indignantly."Not only did she start screaming at me for _forgetting_ to tell her something, she also insinuated that _Malfoy_ is the one fucking _me_!"

I think it was too much for Ron to handle. He choked on the chocolate frog he had been eating, and Luna Lovegood, who had just come out of a nearby classroom,decided to use the Heimlich manuever on him. He was okay physically, but I wasn't so sure about his pride.

* * *

_I just wanted to add that schood is starting, so it might take me a little longer to come out with the chapters, since I won't have eighteen hours a day to type._


	18. Are we dating?

_AN: Sorry for the suckiness of this chapter. I want to ask your opinion. Should Harry be evil or good? Give me yes/no and reasons, please. I would love to hear your opinions. Ummm...I have only had one day of school and I already hate it. I am sure I will be heavy-laden with homework because of my evil teachers, so updates will most likely be slower in the coming, as I said before._

_Disclaim Her: My English teacher is evil! She must die..._

**Chapter 18: Are we dating?**

"Malfoy."

He looked up from the book he was reading. I decided to ask him a question that had been nagging at me since my conversation with Dumbledore.

"Are we...dating?"

He made a face.

"And why would you ask a question like that?"

"Just something Dumbledore said."

He answered slowly, as if weighing his words.

"Well, dating would imply that we are...boyfriends."

"I know..."

"But it would also imply that we get together and snog and occasionally fuck-"

"More than 'occasionally', I'd say."

He continued as if he had not heard me. "-which we do, so..."

"...So?"

"So, I would say yes. We are dating."

"Okay. Glad we figured that out, Malfoy."

"You know, someone is going to think it's wierd that we're...dating, but we still call each other by our last names."

"Why?"

"...You have no previous experience with relationships, do you?"

"It's kind of hard to get experience when you're locked in a cupboard for half of the year, then watched like a hawk the other half."

"I guess I have to agree with you on that."

We sat in silence for a while before I spoke again.

"I suppose you could call me...Harry...when we are alone."

He gave me a small smile. "Same goes to you."

"I can call you Harry?"

He smacked me.

"You know what I meant, asshole."

I laughed for a moment, then sobered. "This is going to complicate things, you know. If we slip again, if someone important sees us next time, it could be dangerous."

He snorted. "No shit."

I was quiet for a moment, wondering if I should really ask the question that I was considering.

"Mal-Draco."

"Yes?"

"Have you taken the Dark Mark yet?"

He looked at me, obviously evaluating my intentions.

"Yes."

He lifted up the sleeve of his robe and removed the glamour, revealing the Dark Mark, along with numerous scars that crisscrossed over his arm.

"You've met him, then. Voldemort."

"Of course. So have you. What's the big deal? It never mattered before."

I ignored his question. "What is he like? To his followers, I mean. I've only seen his torture sessions."

Once again he turned his piercing gaze on me.

"Why?"

"I was just wondering." It didn't sound convincing, even to me.

"Don't give me that shit, Potter. Are you thinking what I think you are?"

"What happened to calling me Harry?"

"Answer the question."

"I was just wondering, really. There are only two real sides in this war, and they aren't Light and Dark. It's either Dumbledore or Voldemort. And at the moment I'm not too happy with Dumbledore."

"Don't be an idiot, _Harry_. You know as well as I that the Dark Lord would kill you on sight before even considering letting you join him."

"You still haven't even answered my question about how he treats his followers, anyway."

He rolled his eyes. "He treats us alright, I guess. I mean, I haven't been tortured yet, at least."

It felt wrong to laugh at the offhand way he said that, but I did anyway. "So, altogether, he's like an honest Dumbledore?"

"Pretty much. Except he has no qualms about torturing people for information. And most of his followers are insane, not to mention stupid."

"Does that include you?"

He hit me. Again.

"What is it with people smacking me? Have I suddenly turned into a human punching bag?"

"Yes."

I was in a very good mood, despite the direction our conversation had headed.

"So...really, there is no reason for me not to run off and join Voldemort other than his wacko minions?"

"As much as I hate to say it, there are your..._friends_."

"Hermione and I are kind of not speaking at the moment, so she isn't all that important. But Ron...the only reason he's in danger is because he's friends with me. There was that time during the tournament where we hated each other, but since then, he's been the best friend anyone could ask for. He's even stopped gagging whenever I mention you."

"You mention me?"

"Only in passing. But, like I said, I don't know if I could give him up."

"Well, it's not like _I'm_ forcing you to make a decision. You started this conversation. You could always remain neutral..."

"That is not an option. Even if I decided to stay out of all this, 'all this' would come running after me."

"I suppose you're right."

"I know I'm right."

"On second thought, you and the Dark Lord would get along just fine. You both have a huge ego."

"Yeah, laugh now. You wait. It just might happen."

Draco gave me a strange look, as if he had just realized that I might be serious.

"Let me know when you decide, okay? I don't want you running off to join the Dark Lord without telling me."

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you say."

He leaned forward and looked at me, as if he was trying to read my mind and find out what I had planned.

"I mean it."

"I know."


	19. What will you do?

_AN: I just want to say right now that here is where the story takes a very serious turn. If you like Snape, stop reading now. BUT: if everyone absoluteley hates this chapter, I have no problem just rewriting the whole thing in a complletely different direction. I just started writing, and this is what I came up with. And I still want people to tell me whether or not Harrry should be evil. Like, REALLY evil, or just pretend to be evil and kill off Voldie later. Or, if you have a different idea, just review and I promise I will consider it. I love my faithful readers, and I hope I don't drive you away with this chapter._

_Disclaim Her: So, like I said, if you hate it, I will rewrite it._

**Chapter 19: What will you do?**

It was at my detention with Snape that it happened.

I had arrived early, just to make sure that he would have no further reason to deduct points or give out more detentions. It didn't seem to help. Although he had gotten over his shocked stuttering of the previous day, that just made him harder to deal with.

"Potter!"

I gritted my teeth and looked up from the cauldron I was scrubbing.

"Yes?" I tried to convey as much hatred as I could in that one syllable.

"You missed one."

He pointed at a cauldron I knew for a fact that I had just finished with. It was now covered in some kind of viscous liquid that I had no hope of identifying.

"I beg your pardon, _sir_, but I just cleaned that one."

"Then you will clean it again."

I growled low in my throat.

"I am still unclear about what I got detention for in the first place. Sir."

He sneered.

"You were being disrespectful, though I doubt you would notice, much less care, your ego being as big as it is."

"As I recall, it was _you_ that interrupted _me_. So I would hardly say that I was the disrespectful one."

"That wil be another detention or your cheek, Potter."

"I suspect an ulterior motive for your lavishing of detentions upon me, sir."

He looked like he was going to explode. "Fine then Potter. Have it your way. Detention for the rest of the month for corrupting one of my students."

"_Corrupting!_" I stood up, half-scrubbed cauldrons forgotten. "And what do you mean by that?"

"You know damn well what I mean. You have drawn one of my best Slytherins into your..._perversions._ Not only that, but you have recklessly put him in danger just by getting _near_ him! How many have to die before you will understand-"

I lost it.

I stood up, my eyes glowing. I could literally _feel_ the power around me, and I noticed Snape backing away, sending worried glances at my hands. I looked down, and saw that my fingernails had sharpened into claws. Long, sharp, _dangerous_ claws. I smirked. I could definitely do some damage with these. I took a deep breath, and smelled the fear emanating from the Potions Professor. It felt good.

I turned to look at Snape. And I jumped.

After that, everything became a blur.

HPDM

When I came to, it was a little after the time Snape would have let me out of detention. There was blood on my hands. My claws had become regular fingernails once again, but I knew that if I wanted, I could now bring them out any time I wanted. I looked around the room, taking note of the light spray of blood on the walls. It was not mine, of that I was certain.

Before I had a chance to really figure out what had happened, Ron came into the room.

"Harry, I came to see why you were taking so-"

He stopped. He looked around the room. And then he looked at me.

"Harry...where is Professor Snape?"

It was the first time I had heard him sound even remotely worried for Snape. He even called him Professor.

I looked down at my hands.

"I think I killed him."

Ron went white. I stood up, and he backed away in horror.

"Please...Ron...I don't know what happened. I don't remember..." I glanced at the walls, and my gaze fell on the desk, and the two feet sticking out from behind it. I walked over, and found him. He was dead. There was no way it could be otherwise. His face...

"Did_ I_ do that?"

Ron came over and took one look before running off to be sick in the corner. I was barely staying in control myself. I must have stayed there staring at the carnage for twenty minutes.

"Harry..."

I turned around to see that Ron had recovered, though he was still avoiding looking at the body.

"What happened?"

I shook my head. "Not enough. Not enough to give me reason to do _this_. I think he insulted my parents. Maybe he said something about Draco..." I trailed off, unable to continue in that train of thought. In _any_ train of thought.

"What are you going to do?"

The question took me off guard. I had expected accusations.

"Well, this is it, isn't it? I'll be arrested. Sent to Azkaban for life. That's what they do to murderers, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but this wasn't your fault! You had no control over it! You're a Daemon, that's what they do!"

"Then I'll be classified a dangerous creature and carted away to somewhere where I will no longer be a threat to society, I'm sure. It's hopeless, Ron. I'm done for. The only thing left is to turn myself in."

Ron was growing desperate. "There has to be something you could do!"

I smirked humorlessly. "I could always join Voldemort. He would have no problem with my murderous instincts."

I was joking at the moment, but Ron took me seriously.

"You're right, you know. He wouldn't have a problem, and he would probably be able to keep you out of Azkaban."

I stared at him in shock. The only thing that had kept me from seriously considering switching sides had been the potential loss of Ron's friendship. Now it seemed that even that would not be an obstacle.

"Are you kidding me?" I had to make sure. "I mean, he did _kill_ hundreds of people, possess you sister, and his followers have done numerous nastly things to you and your family. Would you really have no problem with me joining him?"

He was quiet for a moment before answering. "I think anything that would keep you out of Azkaban has my full support at the moment."

"And what about you? If I join the enemy, give them our secrets, lead them in battles against the light, would you fight against me?"

"I don't know."

"And therein lies the problem, doesn't it? Because I will not fight against you."

He looked startled. "You wouldn't?"

"Of course not, idiot. You're my best friend. My first friend, actually."

He looked around at the room once again, uncomfortably. "Let's go somewhere else."

I shook my head. "At this point, I don't think that I should. Anybody in Gryffindor could tell you that I had detention with Snape tonight. If I show up, alive and unharmed, they are going to assume that I had something to do with it."

"So...what's left?"

"I guess I'll spend the night in the shrieking shack. No one would think to look for me there, and I would have time to think."

"Harry...I think you should see if he'll take you."

"I don't know. I need to do something first. I'll be in touch. You know where you can find me."

He nodded. "Goodbye, Harry."

And that was it. In the space of two short hours, my life, such as it was, had been completely destroyed.


	20. Goodbyes

_AN: So the response I got for the last chapter was mostly positive, so I'm not going to rewrite it. I have no idea where all this is headed, but I'm aiming for an evil!Harry with some human emotions left. I am really considering having him join Voldemort for real. Like, not just to kill him later. If that offends you on some deep level, tell me. I base everything on the response I get._

_Disclaim Her: I stayed up till two thirty last night, and I am soooo tired._

**Chapter 20: Goodbyes**

I left the potions room with one goal in mind: find Draco. I went to my room first and got my invisibility cloak. Then I went to the entrance to the Slytherin common room-I knew the way by heart-and waited.

It was not long before a Slytherin came and enered the common room, letting me in unknowingly. I slipped upstairs to the sixth year dorms. When he wasn't there, I followed the faint scent of blood I was getting, and ended up at the door to the bathroom, which was locked. Though nobody else could smell it, to me the room reeked of blood.

"So," I breathed. "This is where he does it."

I unlocked the door as quietly as I could. Most of the boys were sleeping already, anyway. Draco was standing over the sink witha straight razor. He looked up when the door opened, and I closed it behind me before locking it and removing my cloak.

"Pot-Harry? What are you doing here?" He was whispering, but I could hear him clearly.

"I came to tell you that I'm leaving."

"What!" He was alarmed, that much was obvious.

"Look, I did something bad. If they catch me, I'll be sent to Azkaban for life. So I came to tell you. Just, you know, so you wouldn't think I had died when I'm not here tomorrow."

"Harry. What did you do?" He was worried, though I wasn't sure if it was me he was worried for.

"...I killed Professor Snape."

He backed away from me, white as a ghost. "You...you killed him? Why?"

"I don't know. He just...pushed me over the edge. I don't even remember it. But I know I did it. The room...it was covered in blood. My hands...it was horrible. Ron was the one who found me. I was blood soaked...I had no idea what had happened."

He leaned back against the wall. He appeared to be in shock. "So...you're leaving? For good?"

"I guess so."

"Where?"

I stared at him. "The Shrieking Shack. Why?"

"I wanted to know where you are. You know. If I need to reach you."

I shook my head. "You won't. Trust me. I just wanted you to know that I was leaving."

"So, you're going to spend the night in the Shrieking Shack. Maybe the next week. Then what?"

He had asked the question that I had been pondering all the way up to his room. "I don't know. I figure I'll do the only thing I can do."

"And what's that?"

"I'll find Voldemort. And I'll join him. Or at least I'll see if I can. There is no logical reason for me not to anymore. Even Ron has encouraged me to do so."

"Well, I wouldn't argue with you there, you know that. After all, I joined him myself. But, you know, he _did_ kill your parents. And Diggory. And that Black fellow. You could just kill him."

I winced at the mention of Sirius, then nodded. "Yes, but then what? After that, what happens to me? Voldemort will be dead, and they'll be left with a murdering monster for a 'hero'. No, it's best this way. If nothing else, I can buy some time before I turn myself in."

"You will _not_ be turning yourself in."

I smirked. He sounded so sure. I felt an increasing need to grab him and fuck him on the floor of the bathroom then and there. But I really had to go.

"I'll be in touch." I took the razor out of his hand. "Don't kill yourself while I'm gone, okay?"

He looked away. "Sure. Whatever you say."

I laughed once, humorlessly, before putting my cloak back on and slipping out the door.

HPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDM

I made it out of the school without incident, and stood in front of the Whomping Willow, trying to figure out how to get it to stop so I could get into the tunnel. I finally lost patience and willed it to stop with all my might, hoping against hope that something would happen.

It stopped.

I let out a cynical laugh, wondering why I was surprised by anything at this point, and climbed into the passage.

I got to the Shrieking Shack within minutes. Looking around, I observed the lack of anything remotely comfortable to sleep on. I didn't take much notice, however, as I curled up on the floor and dropped into a deep dreamless sleep.

Much harder times were yet to come, of that much I was certain.


	21. Another Option

_AN: Guys, I am so sorry this is late. I had...a really bad week. You see, I suffer from very bad depression, an anxiety disorder, and there's a big possibility that I'm bipolar, too, I just haven't gotten tested for it. Of course, I've already mentioned my self-injury. I was getting better, but then one of my best friends disappeared on Monday. Like, he dropped out of school, he left home, no one has any idea where he is. They think there's a good chance he might not come back. He was my lifeline. When I felt really bad, I called him, and he would talk me out of hurting myself. So when he left, I cracked. I tried to kill myself. I spent two days in the hospital with blood being pumped into me while my mom stood by sobbing about how she 'never knew it was so bad'. It's a miracle that she's letting me near the computer. This chapter probably sucks ass, but it's all I could manage. I'm sorry._

_Disclaimer: It's not mine, people._

**Chapter 21: Another Option**

I had been in the shrieking shack for about three days when someone decided to drop in. I was startled, but it only took me a few seconds before I recovered.

"Professor Lupin. So nice to see you. I wasn't expecting any guests, so I'm afraid I don't have any tea to offer you."

He stared at me for a moment before letting out an amuse chuckle. Then he remembered who he was talking to and began to shift nervously.

"Harry. What are you doing here? You should be in the castle."

"I'm biding my time before I leave to go join Voldemort."

I mentally gave him points for not screaming and attacking me right away.

"When they found Snape, everyone was scared to death. Then we found out that you were missing. And they decided that Death Eaters had killed him so that they could take you to their master."

"So you came up here to find me because...?"

"Because, I am a werewolf. Heightened sense of smell, you know. I didn't smell any Death Eaters. Harry...did _you_ kill him?"

I started clapping. "Well done," I announced sarcastically. "You figured it out. Someone give the man a prize."

"Why?"

"Because he was bugging me."

"But his face...he was ripped to shreds! How could _you_ have done that?"

"Well," I said. "I happen to have claws that are very good for ripping people to shreds."

I lifted my hand and unsheathed my claws for him. He took a step back.

"You aren't human anymore."

I laughed, perhaps somewhat sadly. "That's for sure."

"How did it happen?"

"Remember when we 'faked my death'?"

He nodded.

"There was no faking at all. I was totally dead for two weeks."

He was handling it rather well, actually. "That still doesn't explain..._this_." He gestured at me, referring to my inhumanity.

"Of course not. That's only half the story. You see...after two weeks, I woke up. And like I told Dumbledore, next time I die, don't bury me in a marble tomb with three-foot-thick walls and an unbreakable door. That made it a lot harder for me to get out."

"Wait...you came back to life?"

"I didn't say that, did I? No, I am still quite dead. No breathing, I don't have to eat, drink, any of that. And, I have heightened senses like you wouldn't believe. Plus my eyes glow and I grow claws when I'm mad, and when I'm provoked I fly into a homicidal rage and kill the nearest life form, far as I can tell."

He was clearly trying not to start screaming. I had to give him credit for that.

"...Is there anything else you want to tell me?"

I thought for a moment.

"Actually, yes. I've been screwing Draco Malfoy since September."

He blinked once. Then again.

"You've been...screwing...Malfoy?"

"Yes, Draco Malfoy. Since September."

"I think I need to sit down."

He sat down. Then he closed his eyes. And leaned back, like he was going to go to sleep.

"Are you okay?"

He shook his head.

"No. I came up here expecting to find you scared to death at the thought of Azkaban, sobbing at the thought that you had actually killed someone, or that you had seen yet another person killed, and instead I find...this."

"It is a lot to take in."

He sat up, his eyes shining with determination.

"You can't join Voldemort, Harry."

I snorted. "And why not? What other choice is there? Azkaban? I don't think so."

"Do those who have already died matter so little?"

I snarled at him.

"Don't you _dare_ bring them up. Of course they matter. They died because of me, didn't they?"

"_No_! They _didn't_ die because of you! They died because of the person that you plan to join, unless I can talk you out of it."

I snorted.

"You're very bad at being persuasive, Lupin."

He sighed. "What can I do to cange you mind, then?"

"You could offer me another option."

"How about what we did for Sirius? We kept him out of Azkaban."

"Yeah, the _second_ time around. And he _still_ died."

"Well...how about-"

"How about, 'shut up'? I don't want to listen to you scrambling around for ideas. Go away."

"No."

I stopped, and took a good look at him. It was clear that he was full of resolve and misguided hopes for my salvation. I wanted him gone.

"You realise that I could kill you just as easily as I killed him?"

"Yes," He paused, then continued. "But I know that you won't. Because you're not evil."

"And how would you know that, Lupin? What gives you that unshakable trust in me? Because I have to tell you, it is poorly placed. I am no longer a trustworthy person."

"You been nothing but truthful since I got here. You have threatened me, you have insulted me, and you have ordered me to go away, but you haven't lied."

"...Your point?"

"I think you would make a great leader, Harry, but you would never be good at bowing down-to anyone. I know that I don't know you that well, and I regret that, I really do, but already I feel that I could trust you with my life."

I laughed bitterly.

"Your life? I could care less about my own life, why would I care about yours?"

"And yet you have not said that you don't."

I looked at him once again, considering. What _did_ I feel toward this man, who had as much as saved my life when I was thirteen, but had disappeared as quickly as he had arrived? He was right, I did care whether he lived or died, but beyond that? I could no longer tell. Too much had changed in a mere fifteen minutes.

"What are you suggesting, Lupin? I think I have an idea, but I'm hoping that you'll prove me wrong."

"I am suggesting that you create your _own_ side."

"And how would I go about doing that?"

"Well...first you would need some followers."

"How would I get followers? Put an ad in the Prophet?"

"No. But I can think of a few right off the bat."

"Who?"

"Well...me. And Ron. He cares a lot for you, I know. And I think that Luna Lovegood would be a good person to consider. And, of course, depending on how much you think you can trust him..."

"Well?"

"Draco Malfoy?"

I sat up, alert. "He is a loyal servant of Lord Voldemort. Why would he risk his life to join some misguided cause, even if it is led by his...by me?"

Lupin gave me an almost pitying look, as if he knew some deep truth that I was unaware of.

"He's been...different, since you disappeared."

I was instantly worried. Different meant bad, when it came to Draco.

"How so?"

"He's paler than ever, and he looks faint, like he could collapse at any minute. I...I smell blood every time I'm near him. I think that he may be hurting himself."

I probably would have paled, if I was not aready as white as death.

"I want you to bring him up here. As soon as possible. I don't care what you tell him, just _get him to me_."

"But-"

"Everything else later. I promise, I'll think about what you said. Now go!"

And I practically threw him into the passage before falling to the floor, drained.


	22. Little Shop of Horrors

_AN: Thank you for your patience and concern everybody! I love you guys so much! This chapter is like my longest one yet, I think, so be happy! And I want to ask your opinion: Who should Ron hook up with? Of course Hermione is out of the question. So, Luna? Cho? Seamus? HPDMRW threesome? Give me ideas, people! I will even consider very strange ones, because I'm cool like that._

_Disclaim Her: w00t! New chapter! I rock!_

**Chapter 22: Little Shop of Horrors**

It was maybe half an hour before he came back, this time with the younger Malfoy in tow. He was right. Draco was practically wasting away. I hurried over to him, almost sickened by the odor of blood that surounded him. When I got to him, I grabbed his arm and lifted up the sleeve. I faintly heard Lupin gasp in the background as the deep gashes that covered his arm came into view. It was horrific, but I was more angry than horrified.

"You idiot! I told you not to worry!"

"No you didn't," he answered weakly. "You just told me not to kill myself."

"And this isn't killing yourself?" I snarled at him.

Lupin was lost. "Harry...you knew about this? And you didn't tell anyone?"

I glared at him. "What reasons would I have to give away another person's secrets?"

"This is more than just a secret!" Now he was getting mad. "He's _hurting_ himself! You should have told someone!"

"It might be a big secret, but it is _his_ secret," I said, gesturing at Draco. "I had no right to tell anyone."

"Excuse me?" Draco broke in, interrupting mine and Lupin's conversation about him. "I am right here. There's no need to act like I'm not in the room."

"You're right." And I resumed my earlier rant at him. "You _idiot!_"

Lupin supressed a snicker at the look on Draco's face.

"I told you, I don't want you to die. And this," I grabbed his arm, ignoring his grimace of pain. "is most definitely killing you." I took a deep breath. "I want you to stop."

"No."

"Why not?"

He glanced at Lupin, then back at me. I got the message.

"Lupin, get out of here."

He seemed reluctant, but he got up and walked down the stairs. I returned my gaze to Draco.

"So?"

"So what?"

"_So_, why don't you want to stop?"

"Why do you care in the first place? What happened to the 'we just get together and have sex sometimes' thing?"

"Goddamnit, I _do_ care! It started that way, but it's something completely different now!" I stopped, then added, "At least to me."

Draco took a deep breath and was about to say something when there was a loud noise from down the stairs. It sounded like it might have come from the passageway. I gave Draco a look that said 'stay here', then I headed down, wand in hand, to see what was going on.

It was Ron. Lupin was there, and it looked like he had been trying to keep Ron from coming in. I was more than a little frustrated.

"Lupin," I seethed. "I thought I told you to _get out!_"

He at least had the decency to look a little guilty, and opened his mouth, no doubt to explain what he was still doing there, but I would have none of it.

"Don't say a word. Just get out. _Now_."

He took one last look, and slowly climbed into the tunnel back to Hogwarts. I remembered that Draco was upstairs.

"It's okay!" I yelled. "It was just Lupin being an idiot!"

Ron looked at me, having no idea who I was talking to. Draco came down the stairs, but stopped when he saw Ron. I sighed. This was too much. I just wanted to go to sleep.

"Allow me to introduce you," I said, ignoring their confused looks. "Ron, this is Draco. Not ferret. Okay?"

He nodded, and I continued. "Draco, this is Ron. Not weasel. Okay?"

He gave me a death glare, but nodded.

"Now, I don't want to hear any rodent or weasel related insults in my presence ever again. If I do, so help me god, I will_ kill_ the person who says it. Do you understand?"

They both nodded, though Ron seemed a bit reluctant, and I grinned.

"So, now that that's dealt with, what the _hell_ are you doing here, Ron?"

He gave me a sheepish smile, and mumbled something under his breath.

"I'm sorry? I didn't quite catch that."

"I was worried about you, okay?" He burst out. "I've been trying to think of a way to get up here ever since you left, but I couldn't, so when I saw that the tree was already stopped I got in as fast as I could!"

I stared at him for a couple of seconds. Then, quite suddenly, Draco started laughing. It started soft, then continued upward until I could tell he was almost hysterical. I quickly got up and grabbed his shoulders.

"Snap out of it!"

He calmed down, but I could tell something was off.

"Draco."

He looked at me, though his eyes were a bit glazed and unfocused, and I could tell that he was not all there.

"What's wrong?"

He took a minute before answering. "I don't...know. I...feel kind of...wierd."

It took me only a minute to realize what must have been happening. I grabbed his arm and felt for a pulse. It was ridiculously fast, working to keep blood flowing through his body, though is was obvious by now that there was no longer enough left to sustain life. When I started to lower him to the ground, he collapsed.

"Shit."

Ron was confused. Though he could tell that something bad was happening, he had no idea what. I was worried, he could see that much, and that worried him. Meanwhile, I was searching through my newly acquired knowledge, searching for something,_ anything_ that might help.

"Ron. How many healing spells do you know?"

"A few, I guess. Why?"

I ignored his question. "Any blood replenishers?"

"Well, one...Mum used to use it all the time...but I don't know if I could do it right."

"Could it hurt someone if it's done wrong?"

"No! Mum wouldn't use any like that. Either it works or it doesn't do anything."

I could have kissed him.

"Okay, I want you to try it right now."

I gestured to Draco. Ron glanced from him to me. "But..."

"Don't ask questions! Just do it!"

He nodded, and started to work the spell while I attempted to heal the wounds on Draco's arms. They were even worse than I had first thought. I grimaced as they made a horrid squelching noise and started to heal.

Ron had finished the blood replenisher, and was staring at the slowly healing gashes.

"Did...did he do that to himself?"

I had expected the question, but I did not expect him to sound so worried.

"Yes," I said, felling for his pulse once more. I found it, and it was slowing down, but still not enough. "Cast that spell again. He still doesn't have enough blood."

Ron cast it, and Draco's pulse slowed to a much more normal speed. I sighed in relief, and sat back on my heels, only then noticing that I was covered in his blood. I shook my head, muttering to myself.

"I tell him _not_ to kill himself, I make _sure_ he knows where I am, and look what he does."

"Why did he do that to himself?"

I lifted my gaze up to meet Ron's, and answered truthfully. "I have no idea."

"But the...the...cuts...they weren't all recent! There were scars! How long has he been doing this?"

Remarkable, isn't it, how seeing someone in great pain can change your entire opinion of them?

"He's been doing it longer than I've been able to tell. He had scars when I first saw his arms in September, with the glamour removed. Beyond that, I cant' say."

Ron glanced at Draco's unconcious form, something like pity in his eyes. "He won't be happy that I know."

"No. He'll want to kill you just because you helped him. It's one of the strange things about pride. Makes you hate the only ones that care."

"What's going to happen to him?"

"I don't know. I'll keep him here until he can walk, but I don't have any food, so he can't stay."

"You don't have any food?"

"I don't need to eat. It all tastes like shit anyway. At least it does now."

Ron turned his attention back to me. "I just wanted to tell you what's been going on at the castle. Hermione..."

"Yes?" I stood up, completely alert. "Hermione...what?"

"She's been talking about you. When they found Snape, she started telling everybody that you killed him."

"And _why_ would she do that?"

"I don't know. Then she started talking about you and Malfoy, but nobody would believe that. She's determined to see you go down."

"Stupid bitch."

"Hey!"

I smirked at him. "What, you don't agree?"

"I don't know what I think. I can't stand being with her anymore, though."

"I completely understand that."

"Look...I'll come back, okay? Just tell me when."

"I'll stop the tree from moving tomorrow night at ten."

"Okay then. I'll see you?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "I'll see you."

Then he was gone, and I was left with only the half-dead Draco and the stench of blood for company.


	23. Draco

_AN: I love my wonderful reviewers! I'm sorry that it's taking me so much longer to write my chapters, but I started school last month, and my teachers are evil. EVIL, I say! Ummmm...yeah, here's the new chapter, I know it's not that good, but it's the best I could come up with at the moment. And I'm still taking votes on who Ron should end up with. Like I said, I don't care how freaky a pairing it is (ie: Ron/Bloody Baron), if I like it, I'll use it. Also, do you guys like the longer chapters? Just wondering, Because they're like, twice as long as they used to be. Ummm...read the chapter now!_

_Disclaim Her: Go to www dot greatscar dot proboards51 dot com! It rox my sox! Look for tyger66 in slytherin!_

**Chapter 23: Draco**

I did not expect to be able to sleep that night, so it came as a surprise to me when I woke up the next day and realized that I had been out for seven hours. Draco had slipped into a coma to restore his magical reserves, which had been severely depleted by his blood loss. I expected him to wake up in about three hours, which would be sometime near sunset. I had far too much time, and nothing to do with it. I decided to think over what Lupin had said.

It had made sense, but I was unsure about how I could carry any of it out. I might be able to teach a few students, but I had never led an army. What part would I play in the war if I chose to create my own side, and how would others take it? What would I have to offer my 'followers'? War is mostly politics, so what would apeal to everyone? I considered my options for some time, and finally came up with something: Humans, Creatures, everything loves freedom. So how could I offer freedom in such away that would draw people to my 'cause'?

Before I could come up with an answer to that one, I was interrupted by a change in the reate of Draco's breathing. He was waking up.

"You're waking up early." I looked back at him, and he squinted at me, still half-asleep.

"What the bloody hell happened?" I smirked, having expected him to say something like that.

"You almost _died_, is what happened." I got serious. "What were you _thinking_?"

He groaned, and tried to sit up, failing miserably. I walked over and helped him into a more comfortable position. "It's your own fault," I said, though there was no bite to it. "Doing that to yourself. What do you expect when you don't even bother to take a blood replenisher after ripping your arm open?"

He offered me a half-hearted glare. "Shut up. My head is killing me."

I laughed, then cast a status spell to see how he was doing. "Hmm. Heart rate normal. Still could use some more blood. I'll have to ask Ron to cast that spell again."

Draco sat up, alarmed. "Weasley knows?"

I pushed him back down, and he moaned in pain. "Stop that moaning, you bloody idiot. We both know that you're in pain, you don't have to advertise it. And yes, Ron knows. He saved your life, so don't you dare be angry at him."

"He saved my life? How do you figure?"

I sighed exasperatedly. "Well, let's see, you were passed out on the floor, dying from blood loss, and he knew a blood replenishing spell. I'd call that saving your life, wouldn't you?"

He opened his mouth to say something, but gasped instead when I poked one of his arms to see how well it had healed. "What the hell was that for?"

"You're arms aren't completely healed. I wouldn't do anything strenuous for a while, if I were you."

"When did you turn into a doctor?"

"I don't know, but I can tell you pretty much anything you want to know about death, and pain, and all that stuff. Probably something to do with...well...you know."

He nodded. "Yeah." Then he lifted up his arm to look at it for himself. He winced at the angry red cuts that crisscrossed all over it from his wrist to his elbow. The freshly healed cuts were a deeper red than the others, and some of them were still oozing blood at a very slow pace. I tsked and quckly cast another healing spell. "I told you to stop. I don't know why this hasn't happened before."

He muttered something that sounded like "You weren't gone before."

I shook my head. "What, being dead doesn't count as gone?"

He glanced up at me, then back down to the floor. "That was different and you know it. Everything was different."

I snorted. "I hardly think our 'relationship' has changed _that_ much in the time I've been back."

He looked down. "I guess not," he mumbled.

I finished checking up on him, and I got up. "You'll be okay here for a couple of days, assuming I can get you some food. After that, you can decide what to do."

He looked up. "What do you mean, 'after that'?"

"At the moment, I'm deciding the best way to recruit followers so I can create my own side in this war. I figured that since you're a Death Eater, you wouldn't want to stay once everything gets started."

"But," He stuttered. "But what-what about...us?"

I didn't know what to say. "What _about_ us?" Then I threw his own words back at him. "What happened to that whole 'we just get together and have sex sometimes' thing?"

He was taken aback. I felt a pang of sorrow, knowing that I had been cruel for no reason. I tried to soften the blow. "I mean, there's not much we can do, is there? We've always been on different sides of the battlefield. How should this be any different?"

He looked away, and seemed to be making up his mind about something. Then he looked me square in the eye, and said, "I'll spy for you."

I was pretty hard to shock by now, but this shocked me. If there was one thing I had never expected, it was his support. I sat down next to him.

"You really want to do this?"

He nodded. "Voldemort may not be as bad as he's been made out to be, but I'd choose you over him any day."

For some reason, I was touched by the thought that he considered me preferrable to Voldemort.

"You could be killed."

"I could be killed anyway."

"You're more likely to be killed if you're working with me. I won't let anyone else die."

"Everybody dies. I almost died last night."

I grimaced at the memory. "Yes, but that was your own stupidity."

"Look, if your starting your own army, you're going to need a spy. I've volunteered. Do you know any other Death Eaters who would do it?"

I sighed, knowing that he was right. "Alright. But if I decide it's too dangerous, then you stay the hell away from him. Got it?"

He nodded, and I told him to go back to sleep.

"Trust me, I'll wake you up when Ron gets here."

"Weasley's coming _back?_"

I laughed at the horror-struck look on his face. "Yes, in a couple of hours. I'll wake you up before he gets here, so you won't be caught off guard, how about that?"

He nodded and mumbled something unintelligible before turning over and falling asleep.

I laughed again, softly this time, and sat down to wait. It would be a while.


	24. Hunger

_AN: I am sooooooooo sorry! I tried to get this out earlier, but my muses totally deserted me! I love my wonderful readers, especially my wonderful reviewers, and I will try to never go this long without update again!_

_Disclaim Her: It's not mine, people._

**Chapter 24: Hunger**

It was not long, really, before ten came around. I almost forgot to stop the tree. I held it still for about fifteen minutes, figuring that Ron would have been there early, and knowing that any longer would be a risk. He finally came up the stairs to the upper level, looking worse for wear. I briefly considered asking what had happened, but I dismissed it, certain that he would tell me soon anyway. He squinted, and I realized just how blind he was compared to me. There was no light in the shack at all, not even sunlight coming through the cracks in the walls anymore, yet I could see perfectly. Finally, Ron's eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he noticed me.

"Harry," Ron gasped, panting. "Thank Merlin. I was worried."

"Why were you worried?"

"Fudge came to arrest you today."

"_What?_" I stood up, angry, my eyes blazing. _Arrest me_? I had expected it, but not this soon, and the idea filled me with rage.

"Take it easy, mate!" I took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm down. It almost worked. I turned, and demolished rail on the staircase with my hands, which were now tipped in claws. Finally, after three more, I turned back to Ron, now calm enough to speak at least, and a lot less likely to kill him just for giving me the news.

"What do you mean, _'came to arrest me'?_"

"He showed up with five Dementors, and said that he had come to take you to Azkaban. Hermione told him that you killed Snape. They weren't even going to bother with a trial."

I was confused. "Why would fudge care if an ex-Death Eater turns up dead? Isn't that a job for the Aurors?"

"Professor Dumbledore has been pressing for your execution. He released a statement saying that you were a dangerous dark creature, and that you were going to join Voldemort, and that you would only kill more people if you were allowed to live."

I snorted. "Well, I should have expected that. At least he got most of it right."

"...Harry?"

"Well, I am a dangerous dark creature. And I am going to kill more people."

The idea did not appeal to Ron.

"You don't really mean that, do you? I mean, once everything calms down, there's no reason that you can't come back. I'm sure they would understand..."

I sighed, realizing just _how_ ignorant Ron really was about the situation. He seemed to actually think that I would be able to return to life as a student.

"Ron. I am a _dark_ creature," I spoke softly, drilling the words into his head. "I have tasted blood. I have killed. And I_ will_ do it again. Things are not going to calm down. They will get worse. And I will be in the middle of it all. I can _never_ come back."

He shook his head, disbelieving. "But...what are you going to do?"

"I'm starting my own side. Feel free to sign up."

"Harry, you know I'll be there for you no matter what. But what about Dumbledore? And how are you going to...'recruit'?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but I heard something strange coming from down the stairs. I gestured for Ron to be silent, and crept down the stairs, blending into the shadows so thoroughly that there was no chance that I would be found. I reveled in my ability to simply disappear, and took my time in getting down. When I did, I was surprised by what I found.

Apparently Ginny had followed Ron, and the sound I heard was her climbing through the entrance to the shack. She was breathing heavily and peering around in the dark, trying to adjust her eyes to the complete lack of light. I shook my head in disbelief. I didn't feel like revealing myself just yet, so I watched her fumble around blindly fro a while until it got boring, then I came up behind her, and grabbed both of her arms, pinning them behind her back to keep her from attacking me as I...I didn't know what I was going to do. I just knew that I did_ not_ want my prey to fight back. The word _'prey'_ should have set off alarms in my head, but I was already too far gone to notice. She tried to scream, but I put a hand over her mouth and told her to be quiet. She must have recognized my voice, because she immediately relaxed. It was a dangerous thing to do. For the first time since I had woken up, I was getting...hungry, and the smell of her fear was intoxicating. I couldn't pinpoint the exact feeling, but it was hard to resist the urge to rip out her throat, which was right in front of me. I leaned forward, and I was about to...but I heard a soft 'Harry?' come from the creature in front of me. I recoiled in horror, realizing what I had been about to do, and threw her away from me. I panted, shocked at the thoughts that had been flowing through my head. She had scratched her arm in the tunnel, and it was bleeding. I could smell it from across the room, and it did not help my situation at all. I turned away with great difficulty, and ran up the stairs, leaving a bewildered Ginny behind.

"Ron," I gasped when I got back up the stairs. "Ginny followed you. Please deal with her, but neither of you leave."

He gave me a strange look. "Alright, mate. But...what happened?"

"I almost took a bite out of her."

"WHAT?"

"Look, I'll explain later. Please, Ron. Take care of her, make sure she doesn't freak out, and I'll be back soon. Okay?"

He nodded, looking at me like I had grown another head. I climbed up the wall, ignoring the shocked gasp that came from the stairs, where Ginny apparently was standing after following me up, and moved one of the rotted boards on the wall over so I could get out. I crawled out onto the roof of the shrieking shack and crouched down, staring hungrily at the sight of Hogsmeade, filled with people. _Wizards_, to be specific, full of life and magic and _blood_.

I breathed in the sharp smell of the night, and was gone.


	25. Blood

_AN: Hey! I got a new chapter up extra fast! Umm...yeah, Harry is a little(ok, maybe more than a little) OOC in this chapter, but he's already pretty damn OOC anyway, so why should that bother you? I like this chapter, myself, but I don't think it's my best. Send me lots of nice reviews and I might even be willing to work extra hard and update tomorrow!_

_Disclaim Her: What up, homies? Yo! HP is not mine..._

**Chapter 25: Blood**

Now, I had a problem. My human rationality and conscience was screaming at me from the dark recesses of my mind. I longed for a kill, but it would kill _me_ later.

I was nearly too far gone to care.

It took me only a few minutes to get to Hogsmeade, and I melted into the shadows, a talent that I was becoming quite proficient at. I headed down into a dark section of town, not unlike Knockturn Alley, in the hopes that I might run into a truly sorry excuse for a human being, so that I could...feed...without feeling as guilty. Once I reached a suitably grimy spot, I stepped into the open, and tried to appear confused, and perhaps a bit younger than sixteen. It did not take me long to be accosted by an elderly man.

"Hello, there, little boy," He leered down at me, as I cowered before him, seeming much younger than I really was. "Are you lost?"

I nodded, wondering what he would do, and if I was really willing to do this.

"Well then, what say I help you find your way home, hmm?"

He grabbed me and pulled me into an alley, dark and disgusting, and even worse, already in use. There was a man and a woman in the back corner, and it looked very much like the woman was taking a bite out of the man. She smirked in my direction, revealing fangs, and a line of blood trailing down from her mouth. I shuddered, even though I knew I was not much better, and what I would be doing was probably worse. I turned my attention back to the man, who continued to leer at me.

"Here now, let me help you out of those dirty clothes..."

He grabbed my shirt and made to pull it off of me, but I caught his arm. Then I looked him in the eye, smirked, and_ twisted_. There was a sickening crack, and he fell to the ground, screaming. I did not bother silencing him, since the only others close enough to hear were the...'couple'...in the corner, and there was little chance that the screaming would bother them.

I made short work of the man, and was cleaning the blood off my face as best I could, when the woman, who I assumed was a vampire, approached me. I took a glance at where she had been standing before, and I could see the body of the man she had been with. I looked up to meet her eyes, and she spoke.

"You are Harry Potter." It was a statement, not a question, and her eyes did not once flicker up to my scar.

"Yes."

"What are you doing in a place like this?"

I laughed mirthlessly. "I thought that would be pretty obvious, considering the bloody mess in front of me that used to be a man."

She smiled at me, rather sadly, almost. "You do not like to kill."

"This is only the second time I've killed. And the first was an accident."

She kicked the corpse of the man away. "This one will not be missed, and there are a few young ones who will rejoice in his passing. You have done the world a favor."

I stood up, and took a good look at her. She fit the vampire stereotype pretty well. Tall, thin, and pale, with black hair and black eyes. She was beautiful, that was certain, and if I had not been entirely sure that I was gay, well...

"What's your name?"

"Rachel."

"No last name?"

"I used to have one, but I have long since forgotten it."

"You're a vampire."

She smirked again, and this time her fangs did not scare me.

"You do not belong here, young Harry Potter. Daemon or not, this is not your place."

I started. "You...you know what I am?"

She frowned slightly. "You do not?"

I shrugged, somewhat embarrased. "I know what I am, I just don't know anything _about_ what I am."

"That is not right. Daemon children should be recognised right away, and raised with full knowledge of their inheritance."

"Well, we didn't know what I was until a week of so after I woke up from death."

"You know _nothing_ about your nature?"

"Not really..."

She looked me over, and I realised what it was that put me on edge more than anything else about this woman. I had gotten so used to the smell of humans, that I just expected it, but this woman, she had no scent at all. And it disoriented me. Finally, she spoke again.

"I will tell you about your kind. Everything you need to know. Just take me to where you are staying, and I will help you as best I can."

I shook my head. "I don't think that's a good idea...I've got a few friends there at the moment, and one of them is unconscious after cutting himself open, so..."

"You do not trust me. You think I will hurt your bleeding friend."

"Well, yeah. I just saw you kill a man, and-"

"No worries, Harry Potter. I will not harm your mate."

I nodded, believing her for some reason. I got the feeling that Ron would have been brandishing a wand in her face had he been in the same situation. Then something she said caught my ear.

"_Mate?_"

She smiled. "Yes. I will explain. Just lead onward."

I was getting more and more confused by the moment. What had she meant by 'mate'? And why on earth was I trusting her so soon? I got the feeling that I had just bitten off more than I could chew with this Rachel person...

And even worse, how would Ron react when I came back covered in blood with a vampire in tow?


	26. Mate?

_AN: Hey everyone! Look! It's a NEW CHAPTER! And it's LONG! -does the longest chapter dance- Points to whoever can tell me where I got Rachel from! Umm...I will love you forever if you leave me lots of nice long reviews!_

_Disclaim Her: HARRY POTTER IS NOT MINE! But I wish he was..._

**Chapter 26: Mate?**

I led the strange woman, Rachel, to the Shrieking Shack. I was worried that I would be more noticeable with another person with me, but she had no problem becoming just as invisible as I was. When we neared the Shack, she got a strange look on her face, and I briefly considered asking what was wrong. Before I had the chance, she spoke.

"You are seeking refuge _here_?"

I nodded, confused. She grimaced. "This place stinks of wolf(i)" She snarled. She no longer looked beautiful. Her expression was twisted in hatred and her fangs were bared. She looked less human by the second, and I drew back, truly afraid for the first time since my awakening. Her eyes were changing from the cool black they had been to an angry red, and her..._presence_ spread out around her, cold tendrils of darkness choking everything in its path.

Then she took a gasping breath, and immediately withdrew back into herself. It was astounding. She gasped painfully for a few seconds, then stopped breathing altogether, as she had been. She looked at me again, and her eyes were slowly returning to the black I had seen before.

She spoke, and sounded almost apologetic. "But the stench is fading. It has been years since a wolf has resided here. I apologise for that, young Daemon. Vampires and wolves are...not friends. I had a temporarily...bad reaction."

I almost snorted, knowing that if _that_ was a _bad reaction_, if I ever made her angry, I was screwed. Then it occurred to me that Lupin might take it upon himself to drop in and see if we were doing okay, and it would not do any of us any good if...Rachel...lost it and killed him. I decided to warn her.

"Ummm...Rachel? I though you should know...there's this werewolf, and he thinks it's his job to check up on me, so there's a chance he'l just pop in to say hello or something like that...will you..."

"Will I try to restrain myself?"

"...Yeah, something like that..."

She laughed, though it sounded a bit forced. "I can smell a wolf for miles, young Daemon. The one in the castle is no threat to me, but I will leave if I sense him approaching, just in case."

I sighed softly in relief. "Okay, we have to climb up to the roof to get in. The shack...wasn't exactly designed for people to actually live there."

The tall vampire nodded, and wasted no time scaling the small building and climbing in. I stared for a moment, then hurried after her.

------------------------------

Once I got inside, I found an amusing scene.

Ron was brandishing his wand at Rachel in a way that might have seemed heroic if she was actually doing anything threatening. Instead, she was standing as far away from him as she could, obviously trying very hard not to laugh in his face. Ginny also had her wand out, but she was to busy staring at the vampiress to do anything with it. Draco was still unconscious, laying on the floor between them.

Ron waved his wand at her some more, not noticing me.

"Get out of here, _vampire_! You aren't welcome here!"

"Ron," Ginny tried to get his attention, glancing at me. He didn't listen.

"You just wait 'till Harry gets back! He'll show you!" Ron was getting more aggressive, and was waving his wand so vigorously that it looked like he was trying to use it as a sword.

"_Ron_." Ginny tried pulling on his sleeve, but he took no notice.

"I'm telling you, go away now or you'll regret it!"

"RON!" Ginny smacked him.

"_What_?"

"Harry's already here."

She pointed. Ron gaped. I laughed.

"Rachel, why don't you wait downstairs for a minute while explain some things to these two?"

She nodded and went down the stairs, smirking at Ron as she went by.

"Harry? Why the _hell_ did you let that thing go! It's a _vampire_!"

"Yes, and I'm a Daemon, and you're a human. Why does it matter?"

Ginny gasped, and Ron spluttered, grasping for something to say.

"But-I mean-it's-Malfoy's still bleeding! She could have tried to kill him!"

"She would not have. I told her that I had an injured friend, and she promised not to hurt him."

"You_ trusted_ it?"

"_It_ is a she, and her name is Rachel. To answer your question, yes. I trust her."

Ginny chose that moment to overcome her shock. "You're a_ Daemon_?"

"Yes."

"Huh." She sat back and looked at me thoughtfully.

"What?"

She made a move as if to rache for my arm, then thought better of it. Finally, she responded.

"Did you kill Professor Snape?"

I fidgeted nervously for a moment, then answered.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I...I don't know. I don't even remember half of it."

She stared at me, searching my eyes for honesty.

"Alright then."

And she launched herself at me, nearly strangling me with a tight hug. I had been prepared for accusations, fear, and threats. Not this. She was squeezing the air right out of my lungs. I heard the sound of laughter from down the stairs, faint enough that only I could hear it, and I knew that Rachel had been listening in. I slowly and careful pulled Ginny off of me.

"I'll explain more later. Right now, I have some questions that I need answered."

They nodded, and I walked down the stairs to find Rachel leaning commfortably against one of the walls.

"Okay, first things first. What did you mean when you said 'mate'?"

She looked me up an down, as if measuring my strengths and weaknesses.

"Well?"

"You said the boy upstairs was bleeding?"

Frustrated with her continued avoidance of my question, I snapped out an answer.

"Yes, quite a bit, not that _that_ has anything to do with what we were talking about."

She shook her head, disbelief written across her face. "It has_ everything_ to do with it, yound Daemon. If what I hear is correct, you have been awake for at least two weeks.After two weeks, you start to get hungry. If you smell blood after this time, you can barely keep from killing the one bleeding. The simple fact that you can be near him without attacking him indicates that he is your mate. Especially if he bleeds often." Here she gave me a look, and I knew that she knew about Draco's 'little problem'.

"But what do you mean by mate?"

"He is your other half. He stabilizes you, and helps keep you in control."

"Does that mean I'll die if I'm not with him?"

"You would not die, but you would become a savage beast. You would not be able to control yourself."

"What about him?"

"He would die."

I stoood there, silent, trying to absorb everything I had just been told. I had a mate. He was Draco Malfoy. Was it just coincidence I had been sleeping with him before my change?

"You think too much."

I glared at the vampiress. "You try dealing with the fact that your entire life has just been turned upside down."

She laughed. "I have already done that, child. Twice."

I could have kicked myself. "How old are you anyway?"

"I do not remember the exact date, but I am somewhere in my three hundreds."

"You forgot your own birthday?"

More laughing. "Yes. I imagine you will, too, after three hundred years."

"Three hundred _years?_"

Now she was frowning. "Yes. I would wager that with your luck, and health, you could live to be well over eight hundred. Your mate, however...unless he gets control of his...problem, he will not live to be four hundred."

"Wow. Eight hundred years..."

"Yes. It does seem like an eternity now, doesn't it, child?"

"It sure does."

"Perhaps we will meet again. I have a thousand or so years left to live, and I would be disappointed if you did not come and visit me at least once every two hundred years or so."

I could have laughed at the way she sounded. Like an old friend, asking me over for dinner.

"You can even bring your friends, if they are still living. I can almost assure you that they will be."

I nodded, then stopped. "They'll be alive? In a few hundred years?"

"The girl will most definitely be alive. The boy, I am not so sure. But he will live at least two hundred more years."

"How is that possible?"

"The girl...she has been experimenting in things which she has no business experimenting in. I can sense it all over her. But she has succeeded in extending her life a great deal."

My head was reeling. Ginny? Experimenting? With _what_?

"What about Ron?"

"I can not explain what has happened to him. It might have just been prolonged contact with you."

"_What_?"

"There is a chance that your magic has been changing him as much as it has been changing you."

"So he would be a Daemon too?"

"Oh, no. He would just be a bit more...aggressive than most. And he would live longer, of course."

I sat down abruptly. "Wow. Just...wow. What am I going to tell him? 'Hey, did you know that being friends with me has given you a longer life span and anger management issues'?"

She smirked. "That would work."

I groaned. "He'll kill me."

"He could try."

"Look, maybe it's best if you leave. Where do you live? Maybe I will come visit..."

She handed me a silver coin. It had the word 'Mayhem' on it.

"If you ever need to find me, or if you just need a good...meal...hold on to this coin and read the word on it aloud. If you like, you can bring whoever you want with you. Just make sure you are holding on to them tight. If you need me...ask for Risika. They will tell you where to find me." She gave me a mysterious smile, and I got the feeling that she was a great deal more powerful, and important, than she had first let on.

I nodded, and she disappeared. She didn't even fade away, she was just...gone.

I stared at the spot where she had been standing for a moment, then went back up the stairs.

I had quite a bit of explaining to do.


	27. I'm sorry

Hey. I'm sorry. My laptop broke, and I might not be able to post a new chapter in a few weeks. I wish I could explain how BAD this is for me. My laptop was my life, and now I don't have access to a computer at all. I don't know if I'm going to be able to cope. So, even though I really really REALLY hope this isn't the end, but it could be. I'm logging on from the public library right now. Please don't report this. I promise I'll get a chapter out as soon as I can. 

I'm really really sorry,  
Diana


	28. Too lazy

_AN: Guys, I am soooooooo sorry!!!!! I got a new laptop for my birthday, but then I had writer's block and I couldn't write, and now I give you a short, sucky chapter instead of the ridiculously long one I had planned. Pleeeeaaaassseee forgive me!!!_

_Disclaim Her: Yo tengo un gato en mis pantalones... ;)_

**Chapter 27: I was too lazy to come up with a name for this chapter.**

I sat down heavily in front of Ron and Ginny, and sighed. Then I shook Draco by the shoulder.

"Wake up, idiot. You need to hear this."

He groaned, and rolled over before sitting up and glaring at me.

"_What?_"

"I just got some very important information, and most of it applies to you, if only indirectly."

"Fine, but you owe me some lost sleep."

"I owe you kick in the ribs for all the trouble you've caused me."

Ginny was watching the exchange between us interestedly, and I could almost see the gears turning in her head.

Draco glanced around the shack, and, seeing Ron and Ginny, recoiled in shock. "What are they doing here?"

I sighed exasperatedly. "Ron came here to help, and Ginny followed him."

He nodded slowly, as if he understood, but still edged away from them, towards me.

"Oh, for god's sake-" and I grabbed him and pulled him over to sit next to me. "You are ridiculously paranoid, you know that? Ron is here to help me. Ginny is here because she's nosy. It's as simple as that."

Ginny couldn't take it anymore. "What's going on between you two?"

Draco, having apparently recovered from his shock and paranoia, answered for me. "We've been fucking each other since august."

Complete and utter silence.

I rolled my eyes. "Way to break it to her gently, Draco."

Ginny was gaping. She looked back and forth between me and Draco several times. "You...and...Malfoy?"

I nodded shortly. "Yes."

Ginny sat back and stared. Then she smirked. "So...which one of you takes it up the arse?"

I choked.

"Ginny!"

She blinked innocently. "What?"

I shook my head, deciding to let it go.

"Anyway, what is this oh-so-important information that you had to give me?"

"Well, it's not just you, but I wanted to tell the most important information to you first. And it's easier if I tell you now, so that I won't have to explain it two more times for them," I said, gesturing at Ron and Ginny.

"...So...?"

I could have smacked myself. "Oh! Yeah, well, that vampire-Rachel, or Risika, or whatever her name really was-told me that you're my mate."

It didn't occur to me until after I had already said it that I could have possibly chosen a better way to break the news to him. He was staring, with his mouth hanging open in a very un-Malfoy-ish way. I could hear his heart racing, and fear was rolling off him in waves. Ron was not in much better shape. He was turning a very bright shade of red, which clashed horribly with his hair, and he seemed to be trying very hard to disappear into the wall behind him. Ginny was trying not to just burst out laughing at the both of them.

"Uh...well...maybe I should have said that differently..."

Draco snorted. "Damn right you should have! Give me a heart attack, why don't you?"

"I'm sorry! I wasn't thinking! Anyway, there's some good news, too!"

He gave me a funny look while Ginny sighed and put her head in her hands. "That wasn't good news?"

I was a little startled. It had never occurred to me to see it as good news. "No-well-I guess-I just thought-"

"Oh, shut up, you bloody idiot." Ron interrupted. "Malfoy, he's trying to say that he thought YOU would think it was bad news, so he just acted like it was. Faulty logic, if you ask me, but that's the way his mind works."

"Says the guy who would choose his pet rat over his friends!"

Ron grew even redder, if that was possible, but before he had a chance to say anything, Draco butted back into the conversation. "So, what was this _other_ good news?"

"Well, I'm going to live about eight hundred years. And Draco, you're going to live about four hundred, but you could live much longer, if you get a hold on some of your...issues."

I glared rather pointedly at him. Ron and Ginny were staring again.

"Eight hundred? You're sure? Wow...Dumbledore is only a hundred and three and he's looking old..."

I was about to make a retort, when something he said stopped me. "How do you know how old Dumbledore is?"

"I heard Professor McGonagall wishing him happy birthday last week."

I grinned. How...Ron, to remember little things like that and forget the big stuff. "Anyway, Ron, you're going to live a couple hundred years, supposedly."

He blinked. "Me? But...how?"

I tried to think of a way to say it. "Well..." Oh, fuck it. "It seems that being my friend has given you a much longer lifespan, along with a few anger management issues."

He stood there without moving for a moment, then spoke softly. "Anger management issues?"

Draco snickered, while I struggled for words. "Yeah...The way I see it is this- you've spent a lot of time with me, right?" He nodded. "Apparently my Daemon abilities have kind of been rubbing off on you. Including the anger problems."

"So...the reason I can't hold my temper for five minutes is because we're friends."

"Yeah, pretty much."

He nodded. "Okay."

I was shocked. "What? That's it? 'Okay'? I thought you would attack me or something."

He shrugged. "I figure I can't do anything about it now, so why bother trying to kill you? You'd just kick my ass anyway."

I laughed. "That's true. Now, I really think that you ought to leave before somebody noticed you're missing. Oh, and Ron? See if you can get Hermione to come down with you next time. I want to...talk to her."

He nodded shortly, and left. Ginny was about to go after him when I stopped her. "Ginny. Stay back."

She turned around slowly, and tried to give me a pleasant smile, but it wasn't working. "Yes, Harry?"

"I want to know what you've been doing to yourself."


	29. Hiatus

Okay. This fic is dying on me. I've run out of ideas, and it's turning into a chore to sit down and write a new chapter for this. And I told myself that when it stopped being fun, I would stop writing it. So I'm stopping. For now, at least. I might come back and post one new chapter, just to clear up the Ginny thing, but don't get our hopes up.

This doesn't mean the end. It jsut means that I need a few months to regain my interest in this fic. I fell in love with the plot once before, and I know that I will again, but for now I want to focus on _The Underground_, considering that it is a plot bunny that has been gnawing at me for months.

If you want some Snarry goodness, I suggest you head over there. points


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